#221 Tasty Words: Chinese Food Metaphors 用食物说话

Today’s Episode

In Chinese, food isn’t just for eating—it’s for talking too! From having a “bitter melon face” to being “fired like squid”, this episode dives into funny and vivid Chinese expressions that will make your language learning even tastier. Let’s take a bite!

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大家好，欢迎回来 MaoMi Chinese！

大家都知道，中国人真的很爱吃。吃饭的时候要吃，聊天的时候也要说吃的。今天我们就来聊一聊中文里，那些用“食物”来说话的表达。你会发现，很多我们平时说的话，其实都是吃出来的！

比如，如果一个人脸上没有笑容，看起来很不开心，我们会说，他有一张“苦瓜脸”。苦瓜是很苦的蔬菜，很多人不喜欢吃。它看起来也皱皱的，不太可爱。所以“苦瓜脸”就是那种苦着脸、不高兴的样子。

再比如，“他被老板炒鱿鱼了”。什么意思呢？当然不是老板真的在厨房炒鱿鱼。这里的“炒鱿鱼”，其实就是“被辞职”、“被开除了”。这个表达是怎么来的呢？以前，人们在公司工作，有些人会被公司开除，也就是老板不要他们在公司工作了。他们要用一块布把自己的东西卷起来带走，就像卷鱿鱼一样。所以“炒鱿鱼”就变成了“被开除”的意思。

还有一个很常用的表达，叫“烫手山芋”。山芋就是红薯，也叫地瓜，热的时候很烫，你不想拿太久，会马上扔掉。那“烫手山芋”就是一件很麻烦、大家都不想做的事情。有时候，老板给你一个工作，但你一看就知道是个大麻烦，你就可以说：“这个工作是个烫手山芋啊！”

还有一个比较新一点的，叫“吃瓜”。这个表达现在年轻人特别爱用。“吃瓜”原来是说吃西瓜，后来变成了“看别人八卦，看热闹”的意思。以前，如果邻居吵架了，人们喜欢一边吃西瓜，一边看热闹。比如，如果有人在网上吵架，大家就在评论区留言说：“我来吃瓜了。”意思是我来看你们的热闹，不评论、不加入，只是安静地看。

又比如，吃软饭。还有很多人觉得，男人应该赚钱，女人应该照顾家庭。如果女人赚钱，男人照顾家庭，人们会说这个男人“吃软饭”。当然，这个是很不礼貌的表达，而且我们也知道这个表达有很多偏见。如果你听到别人说一个人“吃软饭”，那你可以告诉他们：“男女平等，男人和女人都可以照顾家庭。”

这些表达都很有意思。你会发现，中国人真的很喜欢用食物来说话，不只是为了吃饭，也是为了表达我们的感觉和生活。

在你的语言里，也有用食物来说话的表达吗？欢迎给我们留言，和我们分享！谢谢你的收听，那我们下次见吧！

Hello everyone, and welcome back to MaoMi Chinese!

As you probably know, Chinese people really love food. We love eating when we eat, and even when we chat, we talk about food. Today, let’s have a look at some fun expressions in Chinese that contained food. You’ll be surprised how many everyday phrases are actually “food-related”!

For example, if someone doesn’t smile and looks quite unhappy, we might say they have a “bitter melon face” (苦瓜脸). Bitter melon is a very bitter vegetable that many people don’t like. It’s also wrinkly and doesn’t look very cute. So, a “bitter melon face” means someone looks upset or miserable.

Here’s another one: “He got stir-fried squid by his boss” (他被老板炒鱿鱼了). What does that mean? Of course, it doesn’t mean the boss was cooking squid in the kitchen! In Chinese, “炒鱿鱼” actually means “to be fired” or “to be dismissed”. Where does this come from? In the past, when someone got fired from a company, they had to roll up their bedding and belongings to take away with them. It looked like rolled-up squid! That’s how this expression came to mean “being fired”.

Another commonly used expression is “hot sweet potato” (烫手山芋). A sweet potato, when it’s hot, is too hot to hold, and you want to drop it immediately. So a “hot sweet potato” is a tricky task or responsibility that no one wants to deal with. For example, your boss gives you a job, and you can tell straight away it’s full of trouble – you might say: “This task is a real hot sweet potato!”

Now let’s look at a newer expression: “eating melon” (吃瓜). Young people especially love this one. Originally, it meant literally eating watermelon, but now it means “watching gossip or drama”. In the past, when neighbours argued, people liked to sit around with some watermelon and watch the scene. Nowadays, if people are arguing online, you’ll often see comments like: “I’m just here eating melon.” That means: “I’m just here to watch, not getting involved.”

Another one is “eating soft rice” (吃软饭). In traditional thinking, people used to say men should earn money and women should look after the home. So if a man doesn’t work and is supported by his wife or girlfriend, some people would say he’s “eating soft rice”. Of course, this is not a polite expression at all, and we now understand that it’s full of prejudice. If you hear someone say it, you can say: “Men and women are equal – anyone can look after the home.”

Aren’t these expressions interesting? As you can see, Chinese people don’t just talk about food when we’re hungry – we also use food to express our feelings and daily life.

Does your language also use food as a metaphor? Come and leave us a comment – we’d love to hear your examples! Thank you for your listening today, and we will see again soon next time!