I take great thrill in my fortune cookies, now that I am learning a little Chinese. This one taught me the word “taste”. Imagine in ancient times, you are a king who can’t eat yet until the food is first tasted.
The compound for Taste (味) is comprised of Mouth (口) and Not yet (未).
味 taste 맛
You are probably familiar with 맛 from Korean dramas, when someone tries a food and declares with gusto “Masshita!” (맛있다) It’s one of those words that crept into my vocabulary, and I have been known to exclaim it in Korean restaurants. haha! You will also see it in packaging of Korean food.
Some Korean vocabulary for me to learn.
맛 taste, flavor
맛보다 taste, try, have a taste (of)
맛있다 to be delicious, tasty
정말 맛있어요. It’s delicious.
맛있게 잘 먹었어요 It was delicious. (Literally, taste good ate.)
맛나다 (be) tasty, delicious, sweet, savory, have a good flavor
구미 taste, palate, appetite 口味
Looking in the Yellow-Bridge dictionary for related words, I found
Look at all those mouths! Makes me want to go sample some good food at a buffet. 🙂
Hanguk Babble 