山芋 (shān yù) — yam (Dioscorea polystachya) (regional); sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas) (regional)
Definition
A regional, mostly northern Chinese food word that can mean either 'yam' or 'sweet potato' depending on the speaker — example 3 in this row notes it usually means sweet potato (红薯) in the north. Treat it as a spoken, everyday alternative to 红薯 / 番薯.
noun
yam (Dioscorea polystachya) (regional)sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas) (regional)
Measure word · 块
Examples
- 山芋，。Zhè ge shān yù hěn hǎo chī, shì wǒ mā ma zhǒng de.This yam is very tasty; my mother grew it.
- 山芋？Nǐ xǐ huan chī shān yù zuò de cài ma?Do you like dishes made with sweet potato / yam?
- ，山芋。Zài běi fāng, shān yù cháng cháng shì zhǐ hóng shǔ.In the north, 'shānyù' usually means sweet potato.
Appears in
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