kway teow

/ˌkweɪ ˈtjaʊ/

noun

A type of flat rice noodles, commonly used in Hokkien and Teochew cuisine.

Similar
hor funshahe fen
OriginTeochew 粿條 /粿条 ← Hokkien 粿條 /粿条 →
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Meanings

nounkway teow (uncountable)
  1. MalaysiaSingaporeuncountableA type of flat rice noodles, commonly used in Hokkien and Teochew cuisine.

    Synonyms: hor fun, shahe fen

Synonyms & antonyms

nounA type of flat rice noodles, commonly used in Hokkien and Teochew cuisine.

Similar
hor funshahe fen

Origin

  1. Hokkien粿條 /粿条
  2. Teochew粿條 /粿条
  3. Englishkway teow

From either or both Teochew 粿條 /粿条 (guê² diao⁵ / guê² diou⁵) and Hokkien 粿條 /粿条 (kóe-tiâu). Compare Malay kuetiau, Indonesian kwetiau, Burmese ကွေ့တီယို (kwe.tiyui), Khmer គុយទាវ (kuy tiəw), Thai ก๋วยเตี๋ยว (gǔai-dtǐao), Vietnamese hủ tiếu.

More words from Teochew, Hokkien

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

kway teow. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/kway%20teow

MLA

“kway teow.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/kway%20teow. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “kway teow,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/kway%20teow.

Source: kway teow on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.