Word
塩辛い
Meaning in Englishsalty (taste)
Animated kanji stroke order
Word context
What it means
塩辛い means salty in taste; it describes foods with a high salt content, delivering a strong, sharp saltiness rather than a mild flavor.
Main meanings
- Taste quality: a strong salt flavor in foods or drinks.
- Intensity nuance: implies saltiness that can be overpowering or excessive.
- Context nuance: more common in written or formal descriptions than casual speech; often used in culinary reviews.
How to use it
Used to describe the taste of foods with a high salt content; applicable in formal and written contexts, such as menus and reviews, and in casual speech less often; typical constructions include 食べ物は塩辛い and このスープは塩辛い.
Variants and close terms
- 塩味が強い — shiomi ga tsuyoi
- しょっぱい — shoppai
- 塩気が強い — shioki ga tsuyoi
Composition
- 塩: salt
- 辛い: spicy/pungent; in compounds it conveys a sharp flavor
- Combined meaning: a saltiness that is sharp or pronounced, thus salty in taste
Word class
adjective (i-adjective)