Meaning
Zongzi is a traditional Chinese food made of glutinous rice stuffed with various fillings and wrapped in bamboo or reed leaves, then steamed or boiled. It is most famously associated with the Dragon Boat Festival (端午节), eaten to commemorate the ancient poet Qu Yuan. Fillings vary by region and can include red bean paste, jujubes, pork, or salted egg yolk.
Usage
Native speakers use 粽子 primarily when discussing Dragon Boat Festival foods or traditional snacks. It's a culturally specific food item, so the word carries strong associations with Chinese festivals and family traditions. Northern and southern China have different styles (sweet vs. savory), which speakers often debate passionately.
Examples
- 01端午节的时候，我们全家一起包粽子。, .During the Dragon Boat Festival, our whole family wraps zongzi together.
- 02你喜欢吃甜粽子还是咸粽子？?Do you prefer sweet zongzi or savory zongzi?
Characters
Measure words
- 个一个粽子
- 只两只粽子
Common collocations
- 吃粽子to eat zongzi
- 包粽子to wrap zongzi
- 咸粽子savory zongzi
- 甜粽子sweet zongzi
Origin
The character 粽 combines the rice radical 米 with 宗 (zōng), which originally referred to ancestral temples, possibly reflecting the ritual or ceremonial nature of this food. The suffix 子 is a common diminutive or noun-forming ending in Chinese.