I'd like to know whether there is a way to distinguish vegetarian from vegan in Chinese or is the only word available 素食者?
4 Answers
vegetarianism 素食主义 means no animals for meals.
veganism 纯素主义 means no animals for meals or clothes.
However, these words are not popular in China. I don't think Chinese people even understand those jargons.
You'd better say 我不吃肉 (I don't eat meat) if you are a vegetarian, and you'd better say 我不吃肉,连衣服也不用动物制品 (I don't eat meat, not even animals for clothes) if you are a vegan.
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But veganism is as much about not having eggs or dairy as it is about not wearing wool or silk.– James KAug 11, 2022 at 9:04
Wikipedia distinguishes them like this:
and
维根 here is a transliterated loanword from English.
Wikipedia also offers the translation:
纯素主义
for veganism.
Although these words, may, work in their written forms - you might generally not be understood using these words colloquially, because nobody really talks like this. Better alternatives would be:
- 不吃肉 = vegetarianism
- 不吃动物(产)品 = veganism
see online dictionaries, e.g. linguee: vegan food 纯素食 veganism, a diet consisting solely of plant products 纯素食主义 a vegan 纯素食者 iciba:vegan n. 严格的素食主义者; n. A strict vegetarian; confirm: bkrs:纯素食vegan vegan food