Chinese word

饭团

Pronunciation

Pinyinfàn tuán

Meaning

  • nounrice ball

Example

我喜欢饭团。wǒ xǐ huān fàn tuán

I like rice balls.

Illustration for 饭团 (rice ball)

More examples

我午餐吃了一个饭团。wǒ wǔ cān chī le yí gè fàn tuán

I ate a rice ball for lunch.

Core concept

Separate grains of rice pressed into one shaped piece that can hold a center filling.

Common phrases

  • 吃饭团chī fàn tuán

    eat a rice ball

Definition in Chinese

把米饭捏成圆团或其他形状的食物，有时在中间放馅料。bǎ mǐ fàn niē chéng yuán tuán huò qí tā xíng zhuàng de shí wù yǒu shí zài zhōng jiān fàng xiàn liào

Word origin

The compound 饭 (fàn, "cooked rice") + 团 (tuán, "cluster") joins the food itself with the idea of gathering things into one mass.

Usage tips

  • A menu description usually gives extra details about the shape or filling, so this name by itself leaves those features open.

Word lists with this word