番茄
The word for tomato in Cantonese is 番茄.
The term refers to the fruit. You may also encounter related terms such as 車厘茄 for cherry tomatoes, 茄蓉 for mashed tomatoes and 蕃茄醬 for tomato sauce.
Meaning: fruit (noun)
Did you know?
- The first character 番 historically referred to foreigners or people from non-Han ethnic groups. It was used to label many imported plants and animals that arrived from overseas.
- In Hong Kong and Guangdong, tomato-based soups are often served as a sweet and sour accompaniment to meals, a flavor profile that differs from the savory tomato soups in Western cultures.
- The term for cherry tomato, 車厘茄, is a phonetic loanword from the English word 'cherry'.
Examples in context
- 請遞畀我個番茄。Can you please pass me a tomato?
- 我鍾意食蕃茄！I love eating tomatoes!
- 呢個番茄好大。ni1 go3 fan1 ke4 hou2 daai6.This tomato is very big.
- 我想買啲番茄。ngo5 soeng2 maai5 di1 fan1 ke4.I want to buy some tomatoes.
- 番茄可以做沙律。fan1 ke4 ho2 ji5 zou6 saa1 leot6.Tomatoes can be used to make salad.
Example conversation
A couple is grocery shopping together.
- 子健 Tsz Kin曉彤，你想要啲番茄嗎？hiu2 tung4, nei5 soeng2 jiu3 di1 fan1 ke4 maa1?Hiu Tung, do you want some tomatoes?
- 曉彤 Hiu Tung要呀，揀啲紅啲嘅番茄。jiu3 aa3, gaan2 di1 hung4 di1 ge3 fan1 ke4.Yes, pick some redder tomatoes.
- 子健 Tsz Kin呢啲番茄睇落好新鮮。ni1 di1 fan1 ke4 tai2 lok6 hou2 san1 sin1.These tomatoes look very fresh.
- 曉彤 Hiu Tung好呀，子健，攞埋個袋。hou2 aa3, zi2 gin6, lo2 maai4 go3 doi6.Okay, Zi Kin, grab the bag too.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “tomato” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
