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調味料 (ちょうみりょう) Japanese meaning | Kotomora

調ちょう味み料りょう

ちょ

う

み

りょ

う

Common wordJLPTN3

Meanings

1

noun

seasoning; flavoring; condiment

General term for ingredients added to food to adjust taste, such as salt, soy sauce, miso, sugar, vinegar, or spices.

この料りょう理りは調ちょう味み料りょうが少すくなくて、素そ材ざいの味あじが生いきている。
This dish uses few seasonings, so the natural flavor of the ingredients comes through.

塩しおとこしょうは基き本ほん的てきな調ちょう味み料りょうです。

Salt and pepper are basic seasonings.

Kanji

調tune, tone, meter
味flavor, taste
料fee, materials

Similar words

香こう辛しん料りょう
香辛料 refers specifically to spices and aromatic seasonings (e.g., pepper, cinnamon), while 調味料 is a broader term covering all seasonings including salt, soy sauce, and sugar.
薬やく味み
薬味 are condiments used in small amounts to add aroma or zest (e.g., grated ginger, chopped green onion), often served alongside a dish, whereas 調味料 is the general category for flavoring ingredients.

Etymology

Compound of 調味 (chōmi, 'seasoning, flavoring') + 料 (ryō, 'material, ingredient'). The exact historical derivation is straightforward; the word has been used in Japanese for centuries to refer to flavoring ingredients.