Translation guide
The English word "vegetable" refers to edible plants or parts of plants. In Japanese, the most common and general term is 野菜 (やさい). However, there are other words for specific contexts, such as plant-based foods in a dietary sense, or vegetables as a category in botany or cooking.
The speaker wants to refer to vegetables in everyday contexts, such as cooking, eating, or shopping.
This is the standard, all-purpose word for vegetables as food. It covers leafy greens, root vegetables, and other edible plants commonly eaten.
毎日野菜を食べています。
I eat vegetables every day.
このスーパーは野菜が安いです。
Vegetables are cheap at this supermarket.
Literally 'green things', this refers specifically to green leafy vegetables. It is somewhat colloquial and often used in markets or cooking.
今日は青物がたくさんあるね。
There are a lot of greens today, huh?
A more formal or technical term for vegetables, often used in written contexts or in the food industry. It is less common in daily conversation.
蔬菜の摂取量を増やしましょう。
Let's increase our intake of vegetables.
The speaker wants to contrast plant-based foods with animal products, often in discussions about nutrition or meal composition.
Even in dietary contexts, 野菜 is the go-to word. It can be used in phrases like 'vegetable dish' or 'vegetable-based diet'.
野菜中心の食事を心がけています。
I try to eat a vegetable-centered diet.
This means 'plant-based foods' and is used in nutritional or scientific contexts. It includes vegetables but also grains, fruits, etc.
植物性食品を多く摂ると健康に良い。
Eating a lot of plant-based foods is good for your health.
The speaker wants to refer to a particular type of vegetable, like 'carrots are a vegetable' or 'what vegetables do you like?'.
In Japanese, 野菜 can be used both as a mass noun and to refer to specific types. To specify a kind, you can say '〜は野菜です' or use the name of the vegetable directly.
にんじんは野菜です。
Carrots are a vegetable.
好きな野菜は何ですか？
What vegetables do you like?
The speaker is talking about the plant itself, not just the edible parts, or in a botanical context.
This means 'plant' in general. In botanical contexts, vegetables are a subset of plants, but 植物 is used when referring to the organism rather than the food.
この植物は野菜として栽培されています。
This plant is cultivated as a vegetable.
Even in botanical contexts, 野菜 can be used to mean the vegetable plant, especially when the focus is on its use as food.
The English word 'vegetable' is not the same as 'vegetation' (plants in general). For 'vegetation', use 植生 (しょくせい) or 草木 (くさき).
When counting vegetables, use the counter 〜個 (こ) for small, roundish items, or 〜本 (ほん) for long, cylindrical ones. For leafy vegetables, 〜枚 (まい) can be used for leaves.
市場で野菜を買いました。
I bought vegetables at the market.
彼女は自分で野菜を育てています。
She grows her own vegetables.
Is a tomato a fruit or a vegetable?