食物
shíwù
Food
食物 (shíwù) is the most common and general term for 'food' in Mandarin Chinese. It refers to anything edible, from raw ingredients to prepared dishes, and is suitable in most contexts.
What does 食物 (shíwù) mean?
食物 (shíwù) means “food” in English. Word for word, it breaks down as “eat thing.”
When to use it
Neutral. While 食物 is a general term, in daily conversation, people often use more specific words like 饭 (fàn, 'cooked rice' or 'meal') or 菜 (cài, 'dishes' or 'vegetables') when talking about meals. For a more casual way to say 'things to eat,' you can use 吃的东西 (chī de dōngxi).
How to pronounce it
Sounds like “SHIH-woo.” The first syllable, 食, is a high-level first tone. The second syllable, 物, is a falling fourth tone.
Other ways to say it
- 饭fàncooked rice; meal
- 菜càidish; vegetable
- 吃的东西chī de dōngxithings to eat (casual)
Examples
这种食物很健康。
zhè zhǒng shíwù hěn jiànkāng.
This kind of food is very healthy.
我们需要买一些食物。
wǒmen xūyào mǎi yīxiē shíwù.
We need to buy some food.
你喜欢吃什么？
nǐ xǐhuan chī shénme?
What kind of food do you like to eat?
Pro tip: While 食物 is the general word for 'food,' in everyday chat about meals, Chinese speakers often use 饭 (fàn) for 'meal' or 'cooked rice' and 菜 (cài) for 'dishes' or 'vegetables.' For example, 'What's for dinner?' is '晚饭吃什么？' (Wǎnfàn chī shénme?), not '晚餐食物吃什么？'
Related phrases
奶酪 · Cheese中国菜 · China food书 · Book
Want to speak Chinese for real?
Start a free lesson with a native teacher →
Start a free lesson with a native teacher →