How to Say "Toast" in Chinese

吐司

tǔsī

In Chinese, toast is translated as 吐司 (tǔsī). Wiktionary also lists 烤麵包 / 烤面包 (kǎomiànbāo) and 多士 (duōshì).

Meaning: toasted bread (noun)

Ways to say it

吐司 specifically refers to the sliced, loaf-style bread used for toast. 烤面包 refers more generally to any bread that has been roasted or toasted.

吐司 is a phonetic loanword from the English word 'toast'.

While 吐司 is the noun for the bread itself, 烤吐司 is used to describe the action of the bread being toasted or the state of being toasted.

In Cantonese-speaking regions like Hong Kong, the term 多士 is the common way to say 'toast'.

tǔsī

The characters used in 吐司 literally translate to 'vomit silk', which has nothing to do with the actual taste or cooking of the bread.
The phrase 多士 is frequently seen on menus in Hong Kong as part of 'Hong Kong style French toast', which is deep-fried rather than toasted.
The word 吐司 is not just a translation but a phonetic reconstruction that traveled from English into Shanghainese before becoming widely used in Mandarin.

法式吐司最適合搭配菠菜濃湯。
French toast is best with spinach pottage.
This sentence shows how to use 吐司 when discussing French toast.
Tatoeba #13540060 by LeviHighway, translation #10730799 by Cabo
汤姆往他的吐司上放了许多蜂蜜。
Tom put a lot of honey on his toast.
This sentence demonstrates the use of 吐司 when mentioning honey on toast.
Tatoeba #8631002 by ZeroAurora, translation #5471934 by CK
你想让我在你的吐司上涂黄油吗？
Would you like me to butter your toast?
This sentence illustrates using 吐司 in the context of putting butter on toast.
Tatoeba #13881288 by jan_OkulaJu, translation #7117335 by CM
2 more sentences on Tatoeba

Two people are preparing breakfast in the kitchen.

俊杰 Junjie

梓涵，你要吃吐司吗？
Zǐhán, nǐ yào chī tǔsī ma?
Zihan, do you want some toast?
梓涵 Zihan

我要，请帮我烤两片吐司。
Wǒ yào, qǐng bāng wǒ kǎo liǎng piàn tǔsī.
I do, please toast two slices of toast for me.
俊杰 Junjie

好的，你想要涂果酱吗？
Hǎo de, nǐ xiǎng yào tú guǒjiàng ma?
Okay, do you want to put jam on it?
梓涵 Zihan

不需要，我直接吃就好。
Bù xūyào, wǒ zhíjiē chī jiù hǎo.
No need, I'll just eat it plain.

Sources

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