Meat is Not Always Meat in China

Do you like eating meat, such as beef, pork, and mutton? In Chinese, meat is called “ròu” (肉). Beef is “niú ròu” (牛肉), pork is “zhū ròu” (猪肉), and mutton is “yáng ròu” (羊肉). So you see, you can put any kind of animal’s name before the meat, which contributes to the meaning of animals’ meat, and that represents the word formation of Chinese. In Chinese, “ròu” also has another meaning, which indicates the parts of fruits and vegetables that you eat. We often say “guǒ ròu” (果肉) in Chinese to express the parts that we can eat in fruits and vegetables. There are some Chinese words related to meat, such as “ròu má” (肉麻), “ròu sè” (肉色), and “gǔ ròu” (骨肉). And their meanings are nauseating, incarnadine, and flesh and blood. Especially the last one—“gǔ ròu”—is related to kindred, which can always be used to describe one’s child, such as the Chinese phrase “Qīn shēng gǔ ròu” (one’s own flesh and blood).

你 喜  欢  吃  牛  肉 吗？

do you like beef?

最近我经常吃荔枝，它的果肉真是多汁鲜美呀。

Recently, I often eat lychee and its “meat” is juicy and fresh.