饭
fàn · meal / cooked rice💡 How to pronounce
f → like the 'f' in 'food'. àn → like 'on' with a falling tone — sharp and clear.
📖 The Story
饭 originally meant cooked rice, but it now means any meal. The character combines 'food' (食) and 'opposite' (反) — a meal is the opposite of hunger. In Chinese culture, sharing a meal is the most important social activity.
🎬 In Culture Today
Have you eaten yet?' (你吃饭了吗) is the most common greeting in China — not because people are hungry, but because caring about someone's food is caring about their well-being.
📚 Words
吃饭to eat a meal
晚饭dinner
饭店restaurant / hotel
早饭breakfast
📝 Example Sentences
你吃饭了吗？
Have you eaten?
我们在饭店吃饭。
We eat at the restaurant.