試飲（しいん、shiin）
- tasting (drink)

The Japanese word 試飲 (試飲, しいん) means "tasting" or "sampling" of a beverage. It refers to the act of trying a small amount of a drink to assess its flavor, quality, or characteristics. It is most commonly used in the context of alcoholic beverages like sake, wine, or beer, but can also apply to other drinks such as coffee, tea, or juice. The act usually involves a small amount of liquid. It's about getting a sense of the drink.

⚫︎ワインの試飲 Translation: Wine tasting ⚫︎日本酒の試飲ができますか？ Translation: Can I have a sake tasting? ⚫︎新しいコーヒー豆の試飲イベント Translation: Tasting event for new coffee beans

This word is used in situations where you are talking about tasting a beverage. You might use it when describing a brewery tour, a wine shop, or a food festival. It is suitable for formal and informal contexts. You can use it when you are talking about giving someone a sample of a drink.

⚫︎The word is typically written with the kanji 試 (shi - to try, attempt) and 飲 (in - to drink). ⚫︎Hiragana: しいん (shiin) ⚫︎There are no other ways to write this word. ⚫︎There are no variations in okurigana.

⚫︎テイスティング (te-sutingu) - Tasting (loanword from English). This is a very common synonym. ⚫︎味見 (ajimi) - Tasting (generally for food, but can be used for drinks). This can sometimes include 試飲.

There aren't direct antonyms, but words related to not tasting or drinking could be considered opposite actions, such as: ⚫︎拒否 (kyohi) - Refusal ⚫︎飲まない (nomanai) - Don't drink

このワインはとてもフルーティーなので、試飲してみませんか？ ・Translation: This wine is very fruity, would you like to have a taste? ・Explanation: This sentence invites someone to sample the wine to experience its flavor.

酒蔵見学のあとで、地元の日本酒の試飲をしました。 ・Translation: After the sake brewery tour, I had a tasting of the local sake. ・Explanation: This describes the act of tasting sake after a tour of a sake brewery.

The word 試飲 is formed from the verb 試す (試す, tamesu - to try, test, attempt) and the verb 飲む (飲む, nomu - to drink). Therefore, the etymology comes from combining the concept of "trying" or "testing" with the act of "drinking." The combination creates the meaning of a "trial drink" or "tasting".