noun
jelly dessert; jellied sweet
Refers to a traditional Japanese jelly-like sweet, often made from fruit juice, agar, or kudzu starch. Not a general term for Western-style jelly.
夏になると、祖母が手作りの水菓子を作ってくれた。
In summer, my grandmother would make homemade jelly desserts for us.
noun
Archaic or literary term for fruit, especially when served as a dessert or refreshment. In modern Japanese, 果物 (くだもの) is the standard word.
昔の文献では、水菓子は果物全般を指すことがある。
In old documents, 水菓子 can refer to fruit in general.
Compound of 水 (water) and 菓子 (sweets, confectionery). The exact historical derivation is uncertain; the word originally referred to fruit served as a refreshment, and later came to denote jelly-like sweets.