野菜
yasai[ja̠sa̠i]
In Japanese, the word for vegetable is 野菜 (yasai). Wiktionary also lists ベジタブル (bejitaburu).
Meaning: a plant raised for some edible part of it (noun)
Ways to say it
| Japanese | Romanization (Wiktionary) | IPA |
|---|---|---|
| 野菜 | yasai | [ja̠sa̠i] (narrow) |
| ベジタブル | bejitaburu | [be̞ʑita̠bɯ̟ɾɯ̟] (narrow) |
The term 野菜 is used to refer to all general vegetables, including those that are botanically fruits, such as tomatoes or eggplants.
Which one should you use?
野菜 is the standard term used in daily conversation. In contrast, the katakana version ベジタブル is primarily used in loanword contexts, such as in brand names or specific culinary trends.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
To use the word as an adjective meaning 'of or relating to vegetables', you can use 野菜の. Other related forms include 植物の and ベジタブルな.
How do you pronounce it?
yasai
Did you know?
- Using the katakana ベジタブル is often associated with 'western-style' health trends and can make a dish sound more expensive or modern on a menu.
- While 野菜 is the standard term, some people use the word 菜食 (yasai-shoku) to refer specifically to a plant-based diet or vegetarianism, focusing on the 'food' aspect rather than the plants themselves.
- While 野菜 covers most produce, Japanese separates 'root vegetables' into their own specific category called 根菜 to distinguish them from leafy greens.
Examples in context
- 茄子は野菜よ。The eggplant is a vegetable.This sentence shows how to identify an eggplant as a vegetable using 野菜.Tatoeba #11804143 by small_snow, translation #5308757 by Adelpa
- 好きな野菜は何ですか？What's your favorite vegetable?This sentence is a way to ask someone about their favorite vegetable using 野菜.Tatoeba #2759288 by tommy_san, translation #906929 by CK
- この野菜、英語で何ていうの？What do you call this vegetable in English?This sentence is useful for asking how to refer to a specific vegetable in English using 野菜.Tatoeba #2780845 by tommy_san, translation #56634 by CK
- 野菜は食べ物の中で一番好きです。Vegetables are my favorite food.
- 私はヘルシーな食べ物が好きで、野菜が大好きです。I enjoy healthy food, and I love vegetables.
- 12 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Kenta and Himari are looking at a grocery store flyer.
- 健太 Kentaこの野菜は安いね。Kono yasai wa yasui ne.These vegetables are cheap, aren't they?
- 陽葵 Himariそうだね、新鮮そうだよ。Sou da ne, shinsensou da yo.You're right, they look fresh.
- 健太 Kenta何か野菜を買う？Nanika yasai o kau?Are you going to buy some vegetables?
- 陽葵 Himariうん、キャベツを買おうかな。Un, kyabetsu o kaou kana.Yeah, I think I'll buy some cabbage.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “vegetable” translations and entries 野菜, ベジタブル, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
