咖啡
coffee
kāfēi
What does 咖啡 mean?
咖啡 (kāfēi) means 'coffee' — a transliteration that mimics the English / French sound. Both characters carry the 口 (mouth) radical, used in Chinese to mark loanwords for things you eat or drink. While tea (茶 chá) is the cultural default in China, coffee culture has exploded in cities since the 2000s; you'll hear 喝咖啡 ('drink coffee') and 咖啡店 ('coffee shop') constantly in urban speech. The drink is classified by type: 美式 (Americano), 拿铁 (latte), 卡布奇诺 (cappuccino), 浓缩 (espresso).
咖啡 is uncountable in the abstract sense (like English), but takes 杯 ('cup') as its measure word: 一杯咖啡 ('a cup of coffee'). Note: 咖啡厅
Character breakdown
phonetic component for loanwords (mouth radical 口 + 加)
phonetic component for loanwords (mouth radical 口 + 非)
Memory hook: Both characters have the 口 (mouth) radical — Chinese marks foreign words for food/drink with 口, since they enter through your mouth. 咖啡 sounds almost exactly like 'coffee' on purpose.
Measure word for 咖啡
Example sentences
我想喝一杯咖啡。
Wǒ xiǎng hē yì bēi kāfēi.
I'd like to drink a cup of coffee.
spoken
学校附近有一个咖啡店。
Xuéxiào fùjìn yǒu yí ge kāfēi diàn.
There's a coffee shop near the school.
neutral
你的咖啡要加糖吗？
Nǐ de kāfēi yào jiā táng ma?
Would you like sugar in your coffee?
spoken, polite
我每天早上都喝咖啡。
Wǒ měi tiān zǎoshang dōu hē kāfēi.
I drink coffee every morning.
neutral
Common phrases with 咖啡
Hear it in real Fluentide episodes
咖啡 appears in 1 podcast episode at natural native speed, with full Chinese script, pinyin, and line-by-line English translation.
Don't confuse 咖啡 with
茶 is 'tea' — the traditional Chinese drink. Different culture, different rituals. Most older Chinese people drink 茶, not 咖啡.
Shares the first character 咖. 咖喱 is 'curry' — also a phonetic loan. Same 口 radical pattern, totally different food.
可乐 ('cola / Coke') is also a loanword drink, but starts with 可 not 咖
FAQ
Related words from the same episodes
Acquire by listening
Hear 咖啡 in real Chinese, not in a flashcard.
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