In today’s vocabulary lesson I cover how to say “milk” in Japanese. You’ll learn the most important and commonly used words for “milk” in Japanese, their English translations, and how to write them in kanji and hiragana. We will start with the translations for “cow’s milk” before moving on to alternatives such as “soy milk” and “almond milk“.
Gyuunyuu (牛乳) and miruku (ミルク) are the two basic words for “milk” in Japanese. When referring to “cow’s milk” the Japanese word gyuunyuu (牛乳) is used. The loanword miruku (ミルク), on the other hand, is used when referring to formula milk, milk coffee, milk tea, flavored milk, and so on.
Read on, to learn more about the two words for “milk”, gyuunyuu (牛乳) and miruku (ミルク), and how to use them in Japanese. You will also get to know the words for “soy milk“, “oat milk“, “almond milk“, “coconut milk“, and “condensed milk“, and learn how to say “No milk, please“, “I can’t drink milk“, “Coffee with soy milk, please“, and “lactose intolerance“.
How to Say “Milk” in Japanese
- gyuunyuu – 牛乳
- miruku – ミルク
- tounyuu – 豆乳
- ootsu miruku – オーツミルク
- aamondo miruku – アーモンドミルク
- kokonattsu miruku – ココナッツミルク
- rennyuu – 練乳
- kondensu miruku – コンデンスミルク
- eba miruku – エバミルク
- ichigo miruku – いちごミルク
- choko miruku – チョコミルク
1. Gyuunyuu – Japanese Word for “Milk” or “Cow’s Milk”
Gyuunyuu (牛乳, ぎゅうにゅう) is the Japanese word and kanji for “milk” or more specifically “cow’s milk“. It consists of the Chinese character for “cow“, which is 牛, and the Chinese character for “milk” or “breast“, which is 乳. Whenever you want to have or talk about cow’s milk you should use this word.
When visiting an onsen in Japan, you will often see that they sell “coffee milk” or “coffee-flavored milk” in small glass bottles. It is called koohii gyuunyuu (コーヒー牛乳) and most Japanese love to drink this after their soak in the hot spring.
gyuunyuu
牛乳
milk
cow’s milk
2. Miruku – English Loanword Meaning “Milk”
Miruku (ミルク) is an English loanword that translates as “milk” and is also commonly used in Japanese. It’s especially used when referring to formula milk (baby formula), milk coffee, milk tea, desserts, powdered milk, and flavored dairy products such as “chocolate milk” or “banana milk“.
The word is commonly used for all types of milk including cow’s milk. You can literally find the word everywhere: in the dairy section of big supermarkets, in small convenience stores, on the label of vending machine drinks, on cafe menus, etc.
The same goes for the phrase oishii miruku (おいしいミルク) which translates as “delicious milk“.
miruku
ミルク
milk
3. Tounyuu – Japanese Word for “Soy Milk”
Tounyuu (豆乳, とうにゅう) is the Japanese word for “soy milk“. It consists of the Japanese kanji for “beans” or “legumes“, which is 豆, and the kanji for “milk“, which is 乳. You can find tons of really good soy milk products, flavors, and brands in Japan. A true paradise for vegetarians and vegans.
When you want “pure soy milk” or “plain unprocessed soy milk” you should look or ask for muchousei tounyuu (無調整豆乳, むちょうせいとうにゅう). “Sweetened soy milk” or “processed soy milk” is usually labeled as chousei tounyuu (調整豆乳, ちょうせいとうにゅう).
tounyuu
豆乳
soy milk
4. Ootsu Miruku – Japanese Word for “Oat Milk”
The Japanese word for “oat milk” is ootsu miruku (オーツミルク). There are a couple of brands such as alpro that sell oat milk in Japan, but it is less common than other plant-based milk. In convenience stores, you usually can find some really good oat milk drinks, though.
Ootsu miruku
オーツミルク
oat milk
5. Aamondo Miruku – Japanese Word for “Almond Milk”
Aamondo miruku (アーモンドミルク) is the Japanese word for “almond milk“. The brand Glica, however, has vegan-friendly almond milk and flavored almond milk drinks called aamondo kouka (アーモンド効果).
Ootsu miruku
アーモンドミルク
almond milk
6. Kokonattsu Miruku – Japanese Word for “Coconut Milk”
The Japanese word for “coconut milk” is kokonattsu miruku (ココナッツミルク). Compared to other nut milk it is more difficult to find and get this type of milk in Japan, but not impossible.
kokonattsu miruku
ココナッツミルク
coconut milk
7. Rennyuu – “Condensed Milk” in Japanese
There are a couple of ways how you can say “condensed milk” in Japanese. Rennyuu (練乳, れんにゅう) is the original or native Japanese word, while kondensu miruku (コンデンスミルク) is an English loanword that you can use when you are in need of “condensed milk” in Japan.
rennyuu
練乳
condensed milk
The English loanword for “condensed milk” is kondensu miruku (コンデンスミルク):
kondensu miruku
コンデンスミルク
condensed milk
8. Eba Miruku – “Evaporated Milk” in Japanese
Eba miruku (エバミルク) is the Japanese word for “evaporated milk“. It is actually the abbreviation of the word ebaporeeteddo miruku (エバポレーテッドミルク). You could use either of them but the abbreviation is more natural because it is so much easier to say and Japanese people shorten everything they can.
eba miruku
エバミルク
evaporated milk
The long Japanese version of the English loanword for “evaporated milk“:
ebaporeeteddo miruku
エバポレーテッドミルク
evaporated milk
An alternative way to get “evaporated milk” aka “unsweetened condensed milk” is the word mutou renyuu (無糖練乳, むとうれんにゅう):
mutou renyuu
無糖練乳
unsweetened condensed milk
9. Ichigo Miruku – “Strawberry Milk” in Japanese
There are two ways how you can say “strawberry milk” in Japanese. The first one is ichigo miruku (いちごミルク, 苺ミルク) the second one is sutoroberii miruku (ストロベリーミルク). Ichigo (苺, いちご) is the native Japanese word for “strawberry“, while sutororoberri (ストロベリー) is an English loanword.
ichigo miruku
いちごミルク
strawberry milksutoroberii miruku
ストロベリーミルク
strawberry milk
The native word “ichigo” can be written in kanji (苺), hiragana (いちご), or katakana (イチゴ).
10. Choko Miruku – “Chocolate Milk” in Japanese
There are two words for “chocolate milk” in Japanese. The first, shorter one is choko miruku (チョコミルク), and the second, longer one is chokoreeto miruku (チョコレートミルク). While both words choko (チョコ) and chokoreeto (チョコレート) are used to say “chocolate” in Japanese, the abbreviation is more natural.
choko miruku
チョコミルク
chocolate milkchokoreeto miruku
チョコレートミルク
chocolate milk
Useful Phrases That Contain The Word “Milk”
| Without milk, please. | Miruku nashi de onegai shimasu. Gyuunyuu nashi de onegai shimasu. | ミルク無しでお願いします。 牛乳無しでお願いします。 |
| I can’t drink milk. | Gyuunyuu ga nomemasen. | 牛乳が飲めません。 |
| With soy milk, please. | Tounyuu de onegai shimasu. | 豆乳でお願いします。 |
| Coffee with soy milk, please. | Koohii o tounyuu de onegai shimasu. | コーヒーを豆乳でお願いします。 |
| I want some milk. I need some milk. (when buying milk) | Gyuunyuu ga hoshii. | 牛乳が欲しい。 |
| I’d like some milk, please. (when ordering) | Miruku o onegai shimasu. Gyuunyuu o onegai shimasu. | ミルクをお願いします。 牛乳をお願いします。 |
| I’d like some milk. (when ordering) | Miruku o kudasai. Gyuunyuu o kudasai. | ミルクをください。 牛乳をください。 |
| to drink milk | miruku o nomu gyuunyuu o nomu | ミルクを飲む 牛乳を飲む |
| lactose intolerance | nyuutou futaishou | 乳糖不耐症 |
