Chinese word

咸

Pronunciation

Pinyinxián

Meaning

  • adjectivesalty

Example

这汤太咸了。zhè tāng tài xián le

This soup is too salty.

Illustration for 咸 (salty)

More examples

这菜有点咸，可以少放盐。zhè cài yóu diǎn xián ké yǐ shǎo fàng yán

This dish is a little salty, so you can use less salt.

Core concept

Food has a clearly detectable level of salt that shapes the whole eating experience.

Common phrases

  • 太咸了tài xián le

    too salty

  • 有点咸yóu diǎn xián

    a little salty

Similar words

淡dàn: Tasting mild because the salt and other seasonings are restrained.
酸suān: Tasting sour and making the tongue feel sharply acidic.
甜tián: Tasting strongly sweet, with sweetness filling the mouth.
苦kǔ: Tasting bitter, with bitterness lingering after the food is swallowed.

Definition in Chinese

味道含有明显的盐分，入口以咸味为主，常用于评价食物的咸淡。wèi dào hán yǒu míng xiǎn de yán fèn rù kǒu yǐ xián wèi wéi zhǔ cháng yòng yú píng jià shí wù de xián dàn

Word origin

咸 (xián, "salty") has long served as the ordinary Chinese word for the salt taste, rather than being a modern shortened form of the word for salt.

Usage tips

  • Degree words before this adjective mark the speaker's judgment, helping distinguish a mild comment about flavor from a strong complaint in shared-meal conversation.

Opposites

Related words

  • 咸味xián wèisalty flavornoun
  • 咸蛋xián dànsalted eggnoun
  • 咸鱼xián yúsalted fishnoun

Word lists with this word