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Food & drink

tea

Source:cháChinese · “tea (northern pronunciation)”probable

One Chinese word reached Europe twice: overland as chá (чай, čaj) and by sea as te (tea, Polish herbata).

English

tea

Polish

herbata
xɛrˈbata
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In all five languages

BCS script
  • Russian
    чайčaj
    tɕajborrowed · Chinese chá, through Turkic or Mongolic
  • Ukrainian
    чайčaj
    tʃajborrowed · Chinese chá, through Turkic or Russian
  • Polish
    herbata
    xɛrˈbatadifferent word · Latin herba thea 'tea herb'

    The -bata hides thea, from the southern Chinese pronunciation te — the source of English tea.

  • Czech
    čaj
    tʃajborrowed · Russian чай
  • Bosnian-Croatian-Serbian
    čajчај
    tʃajborrowed · Turkish çay
  • English
    tea

    English shares this source: tea — English tea comes from the southern Chinese form te of the same word.