Home › Japanese › Glossary › beef
Japanese vocabulary · Beginner
How do you say "beef" in Japanese?
牛肉
gyūniku
In Japanese, "beef" is 牛肉 (gyūniku).
Listen to the pronunciation:
Free Japanese learning game. No sign-up, play in browser. See all games
Pronunciation
牛肉 is written using kanji. Romanised as gyūniku, it sounds roughly like "gyoo-nee-koo" to an English ear.
Writing and usage
Gyuniku combines kanji: cow and meat. Beef is a premium protein in Japanese cuisine.
Example sentence
牛肉が好きです。毎日食べます。
Gyūniku ga suki desu. Mainichi tabemasu.
I love beef. I eat it every day.
Test your Japanese knowledge in our free browser games.
How to remember 牛肉
Gyū = cow, niku = meat. Cow meat.
Related words
- lunch 昼食 chūshoku
- cash register レジ reji
- dinner 夕食 yūshoku
- meat skewer 串カツ kushikatsu
- chair 椅子 isu
- toaster トースター tōsutā
- japanese food 和食 washoku
- lamp ランプ ranpu
- sandwich サンドイッチ sandoicchi
Browse all Japanese words in the glossary.
Questions about 牛肉
How do you pronounce 牛肉?
牛肉 is romanised as gyūniku. Say it roughly like "gyoo-nee-koo" in English. Each Japanese syllable has even weight, so keep the rhythm steady.
Is 牛肉 formal or casual?
牛肉 is a neutral, everyday word that works in both casual and polite speech. The level of formality comes from the sentence structure around it, not from the word itself.
How is 牛肉 written in Japanese?
牛肉 is written using kanji. Gyuniku combines kanji: cow and meat.
Where can I practice Japanese words for free?
You can play free Japanese minigames in your browser on the Noun Town online games page, with no sign-up needed. Every word in the Japanese glossary also has native audio and an example sentence you can revisit any time.
"Beef" in other languages
Curated by Jack Ratcliffe
This word is part of the vocabulary taught in the Japanese language learning game Noun Town, where words are introduced through play rather than memorisation.
Noun Town on PC, Mac & VR
These browser games are just a taste. The full Noun Town is a bigger, deeper 3D world: explore a living town, talk to its characters and learn thousands of words in immersive VR, Mixed Reality, or on your computer. It's an award-winning game with 590+ reviews on Steam and 12 languages to learn.
See the full game ▶Spot an error? Email us at contact@noun.town