Hi everyone! ^^/
Welcome to Everyday Kanji! In this series, we’re going to present pictures of kanji seen in various places in Japan taken by the team members at JapanesePod101.com. That’s right – kanji seen and used everyday!
The theme for this week is kanji found on food packaging. Let’s take a look!
①
毎日果実 (mainichi kajitsu) = literally, Everyday Fruit
毎日果実 is the name of a snack product, which is 2 crackers with raisins and other fruit sandwiched in the middle. The information beneath the product name lets you know that this snack contains 5 kinds of vitamins, calcium, iron, and fiber! What a healthy snack!
毎日 (mainichi) = everyday
● 毎 (mai) = every
● 日 (hi) = day
果実 (kajitsu) = fruit
● 果 (ka) = fruit
● 実 (jitsu) = nut
Sample Sentence:
毎日、果実を食べるのは、健康に良い。
Mainichi, kajitsu o taberu no wa kenkō ni yoi.
Eating fruit everyday is good for your health.
②
牛乳 (gyūnyū) is the word for milk. The characters for 牛乳 are the words “cow” and “milk”. You can also see the second character in the word 豆乳 (tōnyū), meaning “soy milk”.
牛乳 (gyūnyū) = milk
● 牛 (gyū) = cow
● 乳 (nyū) = milk
Sample Sentence:
牛乳を買いに行ってくれる？
Gyūnyū o kai ni itte kureru?
③
中華そば (chūka soba) = Chinese noodles
When it comes to instant noodles, 中華そば, Chinese noodles, and ramen are sometimes thought of as one and the same, but technically 中華そば is a little different because the noodles are not fried in oil before they are packaged and are lower in fat.
中華 (chūka) = Chinese
● 中 (chū) = middle
● 華 (ka) = splendor
Extra:
しお味 (shio aji) = salt flavor
● 味 (aji) = flavor
Sample Sentence:
中華料理を食べに行きましょう！
Chūka ryōri o tabe ni ikimashō!
Let’s go out for Chinese food!
④
国産大豆のみそ (kokusan daizu no miso) = domestically produced miso (bean paste)
Miso, which is fermented bean paste, is a huge part of Japanese cuisine. Miso soup and fish prepared with miso are just a couple of ways miso is used.
Many consumers prefer products that are 国産, or from Japan, and recently there have even been some scandals involving food that was intentionally mislabled as 国産 (because they will fetch a higher price).
国産 (kokusan) = domestic product
● 国 (koku) = country
● 産 (san) = product
大豆 (daizu) = soy bean
● 大 (dai) = large
● 豆 (zu) = bean
Sample Sentence:
大豆は健康的で美味しい。
Daizu wa kenkōteki de oishii.
Soy beans are healthy and taste great.
⑤
おいしい納豆 (oishii nattō) = delicious natto
Delicious natto… is there such a thing?? Just kidding =P Poor natto has such a bad reputation but once you get used to it, it’s actually quite good!
納豆 (nattō) = fermented soy beans
● 納 (na) = supply
● 豆 (tō) = bean
Extra:
極小粒 (gokushō tsubu) = extra small size
● 極 (goku) = extreme
● 小 (shō) = small
● 粒 (tsubu) = grain, bead
Sample Sentence:
私は毎朝納豆を食べます。
Watashi wa maiasa nattō o tabemasu.
I eat natto every morning.
★ If you think you can remember them all, try testing yourself with this video on Youtube! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z-8ayXYVdfI
★ Follow us on Twitter for future Everyday Kanji series!
