Tea terminology: a Chinese-English glossary
Ever walked into a Chinese tea shop and heard someone say gongfu, gaiwan, or cha qi — and wondered what language you'd just stumbled into? You are not alone. Chinese tea has its own vocabulary, and from the outside it can feel like a closed door.
Here is the thing, though: most of these terms describe everyday actions and objects. Pour the tea, smell the lid, share the pot equally. The Chinese words are just shorter ways to say those things. Once you hear a term in context — watching someone brew, or sitting at a tea table yourself — it clicks. No flashcards required.
This guide is not a textbook. Think of it as a pocket reference for your next visit to a tea shop, a trip to a tea market in China, or just a conversation with a tea-obsessed friend. We have grouped everything by situation: what you will hear when ordering, when brewing, when someone describes a flavour, and when you are looking at teaware.
That is how most people learn these terms — not from a list, but from someone showing them at a tea table.
Terms you will hear at a tea shop
These are the words that come up most often when you sit down for tea or browse a Chinese tea menu. We have split them into four groups: ordering and types, brewing actions, teaware, and tasting words.
Tea types and ordering
| Chinese | Pinyin | English | When you will hear it |
|---|---|---|---|
| 茶 | chá | tea | Everywhere. The single most useful word. |
| 绿茶 | lǜchá | green tea | Ordering unoxidised tea with a fresh, vegetal taste |
| 白茶 | báichá | white tea | The most gently processed tea — soft, sweet, floral |
| 黄茶 | huángchá | yellow tea | Rare. Similar to green tea but with a nutty, velvety finish |
| 乌龙茶 | wūlóng chá | oolong tea | "Dark dragon" tea — partially oxidised, huge flavour range from floral to roasty |
| 红茶 | hóngchá | red tea | What the West calls "black tea." Named for its red-coloured brew, not the leaf |
| 黑茶 | hēichá | dark tea | Post-fermented tea like pu-erh. Not the same as Western "black tea" |
| 普洱 | pǔ'ěr | pu-erh | The most famous dark tea, from Yunnan province. Comes in raw (sheng) and ripe (shu) |
| 花茶 | huāchá | floral tea | Tea scented with fresh flowers, like jasmine or osmanthus |
| 生普 | shēng pǔ | raw pu-erh | Naturally aged pu-erh that changes over years |
| 熟普 | shú pǔ | ripe pu-erh | Pu-erh that has been through accelerated fermentation — earthy, smooth, mellow |
A quick note on red tea vs black tea vs dark tea: the naming confusion trips up almost everyone. In Chinese, 红茶 (hóngchá, literally "red tea") is what English speakers call "black tea." And 黑茶 (hēichá, literally "dark tea") is a completely different category — fermented teas like pu-erh. If you remember just one thing from this article, let it be that.
Brewing actions
| Chinese | Pinyin | English | When you will hear it |
|---|---|---|---|
| 功夫泡 | gōngfū pào | gongfu brewing | The Chinese way of brewing with small pots, lots of leaf, and quick steeps. "Gongfu" means skill and care |
| 醒茶 | xǐngchá | awakening the tea | A quick rinse with hot water to "wake up" compressed or aged leaves before the real brew |
| 洗茶 | xǐchá | rinsing the tea | Pouring off the first steep quickly — cleans the leaf surface |
| 温壶 | wēnhú | warming the pot | Pouring hot water over or into the teapot before adding leaves. Keeps the brewing temperature stable |
| 温杯 | wēnbēi | warming the cups | Same idea, but for the drinking cups |
| 置茶 | zhìchá | placing the tea | Adding dry leaves into the pot or gaiwan |
| 冲泡 | chōngpào | steeping / brewing | Pouring water over the leaves. The main event |
| 出汤 | chūtāng | pouring out the tea | Decanting the brewed tea into the fairness cup or directly into cups |
The steps above are basically the full sequence of a gongfu session. Once you see it done once, the words make sense.
Teaware
| Chinese | Pinyin | English | When you will hear it |
|---|---|---|---|
| 盖碗 | gàiwǎn | lidded bowl | A three-piece brewing vessel: bowl, lid, saucer. The most versatile tool in Chinese tea |
| 公道杯 | gōngdào bēi | fairness cup | A pouring pitcher. Tea goes here first so every cup gets the same strength. "Gongdao" literally means fairness |
| 品茗杯 | pǐnmíng bēi | tasting cup | The small cup you actually drink from |
| 闻香杯 | wénxiāng bēi | aroma cup | A tall, narrow cup just for sniffing. Pour tea out of it and inhale the scent left behind |
| 紫砂 | zǐshā | Yixing purple clay | A special clay from Yixing, China. These teapots absorb flavour over time |
| 茶盘 | chápán | tea tray | The tray that catches overflow water during gongfu brewing |
| 茶宠 | cháchǒng | tea pet | A small clay figure that sits on the tea tray. You pour leftover tea over it for good luck |
| 茶荷 | cháhé | tea presentation vessel | A small dish for displaying and smelling dry leaves before brewing |
| 茶针 | cházhēn | tea needle | A pointed tool for unclogging the teapot spout or breaking apart compressed tea cakes |
| 茶巾 | chájīn | tea cloth | A small towel for wiping the bottom of the teapot and keeping the table dry |
Tasting words
| Chinese | Pinyin | English | When you will hear it |
|---|---|---|---|
| 回甘 | huígān | returning sweetness | A sweet aftertaste that appears after you swallow, sometimes seconds later. A sign of good tea |
| 生津 | shēngjīn | producing saliva | When tea makes your mouth water. Another quality marker |
| 喉韵 | hóuyùn | throat feeling | A lingering sensation deep in the throat after drinking — flavour that keeps echoing |
| 茶气 | cháqì | tea energy | A warm or buzzing sensation in the body after drinking strong aged tea. People debate what causes it |
| 香 | xiāng | fragrance / aroma | Used constantly: "This tea has good xiāng" |
Terms for the adventurous
The words above will get you through most tea situations comfortably. The terms below go deeper. They are for people planning a trip to a tea-producing region in China, or anyone who has started to fall down the rabbit hole and wants to understand what tea makers actually talk about.
Processing terms
If you visit a tea farm or factory in China, these are the words you will see on signs and hear in conversation.
| Chinese | Pinyin | English | What it means in practice |
|---|---|---|---|
| 杀青 | shāqīng | kill-green | Heating leaves to stop oxidation. The step that locks in a tea's character. Done by pan-firing (chǎoqīng) or steaming (zhēngqīng) |
| 萎凋 | wěidiāo | withering | Letting fresh leaves wilt and lose moisture. White tea is mostly just this step plus drying |
| 揉捻 | róuniǎn | rolling | Shaping the leaves and breaking cell walls so flavour comes out faster when you brew |
| 做青 | zuòqīng | shaking and resting | The step that makes oolong tea what it is. Leaves are tossed then rested, over and over, to control oxidation |
| 焙火 | bèihuǒ | roasting | Baking finished tea to deepen flavour and warmth. Heavy roasting turns floral oolongs into something more like dark chocolate |
| 渥堆 | wòduī | wet-piling | Piling tea leaves in a warm, humid room for weeks to months. This is the microbial fermentation that creates ripe pu-erh |
| 闷黄 | mènhuáng | yellowing | Wrapping tea in cloth after firing to let it gently oxidise. The step that separates yellow tea from green tea |
Tasting terms that tea people geek out over
| Chinese | Pinyin | English | What it means in practice |
|---|---|---|---|
| 岩韵 | yányùn | rock rhyme | The taste of Wuyi rock oolong — a mineral, stony quality that comes from the rocky terrain where the tea grows |
| 音韵 | yīnyùn | goddess rhyme | The signature aftertaste of Tieguanyin (Iron Goddess) oolong — a lingering sweetness at the back of the throat |
| 山头气 | shāntóuqì | mountain character | How a specific mountain or hillside gives its tea a unique flavour. Pu-erh collectors talk about this a lot |
| 陈香 | chénxiāng | aged aroma | The woodsy, smooth scent of well-stored aged tea |
| 明前茶 | míngqián chá | pre-Qingming tea | Tea picked before the Qingming Festival (early April). The earliest, most prized spring harvest |
We have a regular at the Tea Bar — originally from Thailand — who fell in love with Chinese tea through our tastings. Sometimes during conversation I accidentally switch into Chinese with him out of habit, and we both end up laughing. Recently he told us he has started learning Mandarin because of tea. That is how it works: you do not sit down to memorise a list. You try a tea, learn its name, pick up the words for what you are doing, and before long you are correcting your friends' pronunciation of "pu-erh."
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to know Chinese to enjoy Chinese tea?
Not at all. At our Tea Bar we explain everything in English. The Chinese terms are a bonus — they give you a more precise vocabulary for describing what you taste and what you are doing. But a cup of oolong tastes just as good whether you call it oolong or wulong.
What is the single most useful Chinese tea term to learn first?
Gaiwan (盖碗, gàiwǎn). It is the name of the three-piece lidded bowl used for brewing. If you can say gaiwan, you can walk into almost any Chinese tea shop and immediately signal that you know a little about how tea is brewed here. A close second: huigan (回甘), the sweet aftertaste. Once you notice it, you will look for it in every cup.
Is "oolong" the correct way to spell it?
Technically, no. The correct pinyin is wulong (乌龙, meaning "dark dragon"). "Oolong" is an older romanisation that stuck. Both are widely understood, but if you want to impress a Chinese tea maker, say wulong.
What is the difference between gongfu and kung fu?
Same root concept: skill developed through practice and dedication. In martial arts, it became "kung fu." In tea, gongfu (功夫) refers to the careful, attentive method of brewing. There is also a red tea category called gongfu hongcha (工夫红茶) — same pronunciation, slightly different character — which refers to finely crafted whole-leaf red tea.
Why do Chinese tea names often include place names?
Because where a tea grows matters enormously. Xihu Longjing means Dragon Well tea from West Lake. Wuyi Yancha means rock tea from the Wuyi Mountains. Anxi Tieguanyin means Iron Goddess from Anxi county. The place tells you about the soil, the climate, and the style of processing — all of which shape the flavour.
Teas and teaware mentioned in this article
- Gaiwan collection
- Fairness cups (gongdao cups)
- Yixing clay teapots
- Oolong tea collection
- Pu-erh tea collection
- Big Red Robe (Da Hong Pao) oolong
- Gongfu tea set
Keep exploring
- What is Chinese tea? A complete beginner's guide
- The 6 types of Chinese tea explained
- Gongfu tea brewing: a step-by-step guide
Published: March 2026 | Last updated: June 2026