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.
I eat vegetables every day.
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.
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.
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'.
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.
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.
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.
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.
I bought vegetables at the market.
She grows her own vegetables.
Eating a lot of plant-based foods is good for your health.
What vegetables do you like?
トマトは果物ですか、野菜ですか？
Is a tomato a fruit or a vegetable?