Think you only speak English? Think again. While you may not be fluent or able to write in another language, the fact is that English consists largely of words we鈥檝e borrowed from other languages. In fact, about 80 percent of the English language is made up of these loanwords.听听
WATCH: What Are The Most Fun-to-say 51吃瓜s In Different Languages?
It鈥檚 amazing really to think of how many languages you speak on a daily basis without even realizing it. Take Chinese, for example. While China may seem a world away in terms of distance, there are plenty of words we use from the country鈥檚 languages regularly.听
In China, two of the major forms听of Chinese spoken are听Mandarin and Cantonese. Mandarin is the official language of mainland China, spoken primarily in the north as well as in Singapore and Taiwan. Cantonese, on the other hand, is spoken primarily in southern China, including Hong Kong. Not surprisingly, the English language borrows from both.听Let鈥檚 take a look at some of the words听English ultimately owes to Chinese, along one etymological pathway or another.
ketchup
As American as this condiment may seem, the word apparently comes from the Chinese language. Via the Malay 办蓹肠丑补辫 (“fish sauce”),听ketchup is believed to derive from two Chinese forms: 办茅箩腻辫听(Guangdong) and ke-tsiap (Xiamen). The literal Chinese translation is “eggplant juice.” Hmm, so when did tomato get mixed up in it?
tofu听
Whether or not ketchup on tofu sounds tasty is up to you, but the word for this healthy, soybean-based food also comes to us from China. It comes into English from Japanese (迟艒蹿耻), which is itself heavily indebted to the Chinese language. The old Chinese word 诲貌耻蹿耻 combines 诲貌耻, meaning 鈥�bean鈥� and 蹿菙, meaning 鈥渢urn sour, ferment.鈥�
Shih Tzu
Sweet little Shih Tzu puppies are a popular breed in the United States now, but they used to be considered pets of nobility in China. Their name is听蝉丑墨锄颈 驳菕耻, which comes from 蝉丑墨锄颈 meaning 鈥渓ion鈥� and 驳菕耻, 听meaning 鈥渄og.鈥� They are Shih Tzus, hear them roar … or bark.听
gung-ho
You may say you鈥檙e gung-ho about something鈥攂e it for the latest Netflix series or a new project at work鈥攊f you鈥檙e really excited about it. While the term was used as a Marine training slogan in the mid鈥�1900s in the United States, it stems from the Mandarin phrase g艒ng h茅, which is the abbreviated name of the Chinese Cooperative Society, meaning 鈥渨ork together.鈥澨�
kowtow
If you kowtow to your boss or your bossy sister-in-law, you鈥檙e deferring to them or letting them have their way. The word stems from the Cantonese word 办貌耻迟贸耻, which means to 鈥� knock (one’s) head,鈥� but we don鈥檛 recommend ever kowtowing to anyone that hard.听
tycoon听
Ah, if only we could all be tycoons. Defined as 鈥渁 person of great wealth, influence, or power,鈥� the word tycoon comes from the Japanese word taikun, which is equivalent to the Chinese words 诲脿, meaning 鈥済reat鈥� and 箩奴苍, meaning 鈥減rince.鈥� Similar in sound, but less enviable, is the word typhoon, which also ultimately comes from Chinese. It鈥檚 akin to the word 诲脿f膿ng meaning, 鈥済reat wind,鈥� which, in turn, was altered by association with the Greek word 迟瘸辫丑么苍, meaning 鈥渧iolent wind.鈥澨�
yen
Yes, a yen is a Japanese coin,听whose name comes from the name of the Chinese currency, yuan. But in this case we鈥檙e talking about the definition that refers to “a desire or craving” for something, which comes from Chinese. As in, I have a yen for some ice cream. It comes from the Chinese word 测谩丑苍, which is akin to 测菒苍, meaning 鈥渃raving, addiction.鈥澨�
yin and yang
You may tell your soulmate, 鈥淵ou are the yin to my yang,鈥� which, to take a line from the movie Jerry Mcguire, means they complete you. Yin and yang stem from the word听测墨苍-测谩苍驳, which combines yin meaning 鈥渇eminine鈥� and yang, meaning 鈥渕ale genitals.鈥� It describes the Chinese belief that two principles鈥攐ne related to the moon, shade, and femininity, and the other to daylight, sun, and male genitals鈥� interact with one another to determine destinies.听听
Learn more about yin and yang in our Vocab Builder article.
chin-chin听
You probably hear this phrase most often used as a toast these days, as drinkers clink glasses and proclaim, 鈥淐hin, chin!鈥� But it鈥檚 also a noun for all that lighthearted party prattle, defined as 鈥減olite and ceremonious speech鈥� or 鈥渓ight conversation; chitchat.鈥� However you choose to use it, know that it comes from the Chinese word 辩菒苍驳-辩菒苍驳, meaning 鈥減lease-please,” which was itself used as a toast and greeting.听
So, the next time you put some ketchup on your hot dog, or get gung-ho about eating healthy and buy some tofu in bulk, take a second to recognize how these words came to be. Maybe it will make you hungry to learn more about these languages 鈥� or just hungry for some Chinese food.
In any case, digging into the origins of the words that make up the English language is endlessly fascinating and gives us a better understanding of what we鈥檙e saying.听听
How many of these words did you know had Chinese origins?听
What other languages do you inadvertently speak? You might be surprised by how many Urdu and Hindi words you know.
