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香料 (xiāng liào) — cooking spice, flavoring, condiment; perfume, fragrance ingredient

Definition

香料 covers both food spices and perfume ingredients — the raw material itself. Use 调料/作料 for seasonings added while cooking; 香水 is the finished fragrance product, not the ingredient.

noun
cooking spiceflavoringcondimentperfumefragrance ingredient
Measure word · 种

Examples

  • 香料，。
    Chāo shì lǐ yǒu hěn duō zhǒng xiāng liào, nǐ kě yǐ màn màn xuǎn.
    There are many kinds of spices in the supermarket; you can take your time choosing.
  • 香料。
    Zhè zhǒng xiāng liào shì zhì zuò gāo jí xiāng shuǐ de zhòng yào yuán liào.
    This fragrance ingredient is an important raw material for making high-end perfume.
  • 香料。
    Gǔ dài rén bǎ xiāng liào dàng zuò zhēn guì de shāng pǐn jìn xíng mào yì.
    Ancient people traded spices as precious commodities.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

香xiāngfragrant
料liàomaterial

香 describes fragrance, and 料 names material, giving a fragrant material used as spice or perfume.

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

香's early form paired 黍 (glutinous millet) with 口 (mouth), perhaps showing millet drink being taken in or offered.

Open 香 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

料 combines 米 (rice) with 斗 (a dipper), showing rice being measured or gauged.

Open 料 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Flavors & Seasonings

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