# Define 'tea' **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 12, 2017, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/define-tea/788739 "2017-06-12T00:21:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2017, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/define-tea/788739/1 "2017-06-12T00:21:05Z")
The other night I picked some mint leaves, tore them up, and steeped them in boiling water. I call this ‘mint tea’. But is it really ‘tea’? Tea is made from the tea plant, _Camellia sinensis_. Spearmint is _Mentha spicata_. How strict/pedantic are you in your definition of ‘tea’? ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2017, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/define-tea/788739/2 "2017-06-12T00:25:53Z")
“Tea” without a modifier better be _C. sinesis_ or heads will roll. With a modifier it can be anything you like. Sorta like “martini.” ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2017, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/define-tea/788739/3 "2017-06-12T00:29:23Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > “Tea” without a modifier better be _C. sinesis_ or heads will roll. With a modifier it can be anything you like. Sorta like “martini.” Or “chili”. _flees_ ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2017, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/define-tea/788739/4 "2017-06-12T00:29:39Z")
It also means “evening meal.” Which can be confusing when one watches British shows and hears “What do you want for tea?” ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2017, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/define-tea/788739/5 "2017-06-12T00:30:20Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > “Tea” without a modifier better be _C. sinesis_ or heads will roll. With a modifier it can be anything you like. Sorta like “martini.” +1 ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2017, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/define-tea/788739/6 "2017-06-12T00:31:37Z")
I buy a lot of my tea from this ritzy [tea shop](http://www.t2tea.com/en/au/tea/herbal-floral-tisane/), and they call their fruit and herb concoctions tisanes. But I still ask visitors if they want a “herbal tea.” ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2017, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/define-tea/788739/7 "2017-06-12T00:31:39Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > “Tea” without a modifier better be _C. sinesis_ or heads will roll. With a modifier it can be anything you like. Sorta like “martini.” I have no problem with a tisane being called a tea, personally. > [@DrFidelius](#): > > +1 ---
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2017, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/define-tea/788739/8 "2017-06-12T01:07:57Z")
Yeah, you can call a tisane a “tea” in front of me and not fear a bone-crushing punch in the nose. I’m easy. ---
**Author:** ![D\_Odds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/d_odds/32/2882_2.png) [@D\_Odds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Odds)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2017, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/define-tea/788739/9 "2017-06-12T01:51:55Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > The other night I picked some mint leaves, tore them up, and steeped them in boiling water. I call this ‘mint tea’. But is it really ‘tea’? Tea is made from the tea plant, _Camellia sinensis_. Spearmint is _Mentha spicata_. > > How strict/pedantic are you in your definition of ‘tea’? While I’m not terribly serious when I say it, I’m of the belief that if it isn’t _C. sinensis_, it shouldn’t be called tea. Hell, I barely consider decaffeinated tea to truly be tea. And never offer me tea and only have herbal/decaffeinated options. That’s just teasing. That said, while I truly enjoy a premium tea, I’m certainly not a tea snob (as long as tea is brewed from fully caffeinated _C. sinensis_). ---
**Author:** ![Balance](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ccd318/32.png) [@Balance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balance)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2017, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/define-tea/788739/10 "2017-06-12T03:15:49Z")
> [@don\_t\_ask](#): > > I buy a lot of my tea from this ritzy [tea shop](http://www.t2tea.com/en/au/tea/herbal-floral-tisane/), and they call their fruit and herb concoctions tisanes. But I still ask visitors if they want a “herbal tea.” I drink tea, and I drink tisanes. If it comforts anyone, they may assume\* that I am abbreviating “tisane” to “ti”\* when I speak of steeped beverages which are not based on _C. sinesis_. They may also assume that autocorrect does not recognize “ti” as a word, thereby further protecting their delicate sensibilities from the horrors of Descriptivism. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2017, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/define-tea/788739/11 "2017-06-12T04:30:56Z")
A drink with jam and bread That will bring us back to Do (oh-oh-oh) ---
**Author:** ![Paintcharge](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/paintcharge/32/7946_2.png) [@Paintcharge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paintcharge)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2017, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/define-tea/788739/12 "2017-06-12T13:29:46Z")
"You want the taste of dried leaves boiled in water?” “Er, yes. With milk.” “Squirted out of a cow?” “Well in a manner of speaking, I suppose…" -Douglas Adams ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2017, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/define-tea/788739/13 "2017-06-12T13:45:38Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > “Tea” without a modifier better be _C. sinesis_ or heads will roll. With a modifier it can be anything you like. Sorta like “martini.” I can accept that. The use of ‘tea’ to mean anything but coffee steeped in water derives from the original drink, although ‘tea’ by itself for other varieties is often just shorthand for ‘something tea’ within context. Coffee is the only substance that tastes so horrible that it can’t be referred to as ‘tea’ in any manner. ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2017, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/define-tea/788739/14 "2017-06-12T13:47:32Z")
Ginger tea is another good example. They make lots of tea/ginger combos, but in SEAsia ginger tea is usually made from just ginger. I often explain this distinction to guests after offering them ginger tea, as the one I make is just ginger, no actual tea! ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2017, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/define-tea/788739/15 "2017-06-12T14:17:44Z")
To me, “tea” is an infusion of the soft parts (usually leaves, but occasionally blossoms) of _C. sinensis_ in hot water, drunk as a beverage. Similar infusions of the soft parts of other plants are tisanes, not tea, and infusions of _C. sinensis_ in cold water (or _shudder_ supersaturated cold sugar solutions contaminated with such infusion, as is common in the South) are generally best not spoken of at all. That said, I also recognize that very few other people recognize this distinction, and so I will grudgingly use the phrase “herbal tea” for the sake of communication. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2017, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/define-tea/788739/16 "2017-06-12T14:22:09Z")
It’s all tea to me. Today I learned a new word:tisane. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2017, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/define-tea/788739/17 "2017-06-12T14:25:25Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > infusions of _C. sinensis_ in cold water… are generally best not spoken of at all. [Not a desert-dweller](http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/sun_tea/), I take it? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2017, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/define-tea/788739/18 "2017-06-12T16:18:32Z")
Tea is, properly speaking, an infusion of _Camellia sinensis_. However, in informal speech and writing the construction “herbal tea” is understood to be an infusion of something other than _Camellia sinensis_ (which is technically a tisane). As I’m more interested in communicating with people than being a grammar/language Nazi I don’t worry about it. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2017, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/define-tea/788739/19 "2017-06-12T17:05:33Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > Tea is, properly speaking, an infusion of _Camellia sinensis_. However, in informal speech and writing the construction “herbal tea” is understood to be an infusion of something other than _Camellia sinensis_ (which is technically a tisane). As I’m more interested in communicating with people than being a grammar/language Nazi I don’t worry about it. Where’s the fun in that? ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2017, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/define-tea/788739/20 "2017-06-12T17:40:07Z")
I consider tisanes a subset of tea. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/define-tea/788739.md?page=2)