好吃
hǎochī
The Chinese word for yummy is 好吃 (hǎochī).
好吃 is used to describe food that is delicious. If you are describing a drink, such as tea, coffee or soup, you should use 好喝 instead.
Meaning: delicious (adj)
Which one should you use?
While 好吃 is the standard term for food, 好喝 is used specifically for liquids. For a more intense, informal expression regarding food, you can say 好吃到爆, which means delicious to the point of exploding.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Cantonese, you can use 好好味 to mean very delicious.
How does it change in a sentence?
To say that something is very yummy, add 很 before the word to get 很好吃.
How do you pronounce it?
hǎochī
Did you know?
- The character 好 in 好吃 literally means 'good', but it is composed of the radicals for 'woman' and 'child', suggesting that a mother with her child is the definition of goodness.
- In many Chinese regions, people describe food as 'having flavor' by saying 有味, but be careful: in some contexts, this can also mean 'smelly' or 'stinky'.
- If you want to describe a food as 'tasty' in a more formal or culinary sense, you might move away from 好吃 and use 美味, which uses the character for 'beauty'.
Examples in context
- 真好吃。It's so yummy.This sentence is useful for expressing that something is very yummy using 好吃.Tatoeba #5611611 by verdastelo9604, translation #3527198 by adamtrousers
- 非常好吃 (fēi cháng hǎo chī)Extremely yummy
- 超级美味 (chāo jí měi wèi)Super delicious
- 特别香 (tè bié xiāng)Especially fragrant
- 真好吃 (zhēn hǎo chī)Really yummy
- 真美味 (zhēn měi wèi)Truly delicious
- 这个很好吃。This is very yummy.
- 这个菜很好吃。Zhège cài hěn hǎochī.This dish is delicious.
- 妈妈做的饭很好吃。Māma zuò de fàn hěn hǎochī.Mom's cooking is yummy.
Example conversation
Zihan and Junjie are eating lunch together at a restaurant.
- 梓涵 Zihan这里的面条很好吃。Zhèlǐ de miàntiáo hěn hǎochī.The noodles here are delicious.
- 俊杰 Junjie是啊，我也觉得很好吃。Shì a, wǒ yě juédé hěn hǎochī.Yes, I think they are yummy too.
- 梓涵 Zihan你想再吃一点吗？Nǐ xiǎng zài chī yìdiǎn ma?Do you want to eat a little more?
- 俊杰 Junjie不吃了，我饱了。Bù chī le, wǒ bǎo le.No thanks, I am full.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “yummy” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
