Catalogue 中文: What It Means and When to Use 目錄 or 型錄

Catalogue 中文 is 目錄 in traditional Chinese and 目录 in simplified Chinese, both pronounced mùlù. The same word covers a printed product catalog, an online store listing, and the table of contents at the front of a book. In Taiwan and Hong Kong, a glossy sales brochure is usually called 型錄 (型录 in simplified characters), so bilingual sites often use both terms side by side.

The Main Chinese Words for Catalogue

Chinese has several words that English speakers lump together under catalogue. The right one depends on the format, the audience, and the region.

English	Traditional	Simplified	Pinyin	Typical use
Catalogue / catalog	目錄	目录	mùlù	General term; also table of contents
Product catalogue	產品目錄	产品目录	chǎnpǐn mùlù	Retail and B2B listings
Sales brochure / catalog	型錄	型录	xínglù	Taiwan and Hong Kong; printed spec sheets
Price list	價目表	价目表	jiàmùbiǎo	Prices only, no product photos
Online catalog	線上目錄	线上目录	xiànshàng mùlù	E-commerce and PDF downloads

目錄 is the safest default because it works for both physical and digital catalogs. 型錄 is narrower and more commercial, and it is the word Taiwanese buyers expect on a product brochure.

目錄 vs 型錄 vs 一覽表: Which One Fits Your Text?

• 目錄 (mùlù) — the general term for a catalog or a table of contents. Use it for mainland China, Singapore, and most translated software.
• 產品目錄 (chǎnpǐn mùlù) — product catalog. This is the phrase most e-commerce and B2B pages use in navigation menus.
• 型錄 (xínglù) — Taiwan and Hong Kong usage for a printed or PDF brochure with photos and specifications. 產品型錄 is the common pairing.
• 價目表 (jiàmùbiǎo) — a price list or rate card. Choose it when you publish numbers without product descriptions.
• 一覽表 (yīlǎnbiǎo) — an overview table or schedule, such as a one-page comparison chart rather than a shop catalog.

A simple rule: 目錄 for a general catalog, 型錄 for a Taiwan-facing sales brochure, and 一覽表 for a comparison chart.

Traditional or Simplified? 目錄 or 目录

Traditional characters are standard in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau, while simplified characters are standard in mainland China, Singapore, and Malaysia. Any page explaining Catalogue 中文 should say which variant it is teaching, because 目錄 and 目录 are the same word written two ways.

Mixed audiences create practical problems. Some bilingual storefronts label a navigation link Catalog 官網 to show Chinese-speaking visitors they are on the brand's official site, then repeat the same link in the localized menu as 官方網站目錄. If the two versions disagree on character set, readers notice immediately.

How Chinese Catalogs Handle English Product Names

Chinese catalogs rarely translate an entire product line. Brand names, model numbers, and chemical names usually stay in Latin script with a short Chinese gloss, because a mistranslated formula name creates real risk.

Health and research listings are the clearest example. A localized page may carry a bpc-157 dosage chart by weight, reference material on how to store bpc 157, and an FAQ explaining where to buy bpc-157 peptide — all of which must match the English source word for word and unit for unit.

Blended product names such as ghk-cu + tb-500 + bpc-157; glow blend are normally left as-is, since the formula itself is the product. Translators add a Chinese description beside the name instead of replacing it.

Reading a Chinese Catalogue: Practical Tips

1. Check the character set first. 目錄 signals traditional Chinese content for Taiwan or Hong Kong; 目录 signals simplified Chinese for the mainland.
2. Look for 產品目錄 or 產品型錄 in navigation menus — these are the standard labels for a product list.
3. Expect incomplete unit conversions. Chinese catalogs often keep mg, mL, and °C from the source document rather than converting to local units.
4. Treat translated usage or dosing tables as informational only, and verify every figure against the original manufacturer documentation.
5. Search by brand name plus 官網 or 價格 rather than typing 目錄, since shoppers rarely search with the word for catalog.

Safety and Accuracy in Health-Related Catalogs

Research peptides such as BPC-157, TB-500, and GHK-Cu are not approved drugs in the United States, and Chinese-language listings sometimes describe them in terms that sound more clinical than the evidence supports. BPC-157 is not FDA-approved for human use in the United States.

A careful translation preserves that uncertainty. It should not upgrade "studied in animals" into "proven," and it should keep any disclaimer about consulting a licensed healthcare professional.

In short, Catalogue 中文 comes down to 目錄 in traditional Chinese and 目录 in simplified Chinese, with 型錄 reserved for Taiwan-style sales brochures.

COMMON QUESTIONS

Frequently Asked Questions

What does catalogue mean in Chinese?

Catalogue is written 目錄 in traditional Chinese and 目录 in simplified Chinese, both pronounced mùlù. The same characters also mean table of contents, so context usually decides the sense. For a product listing, 產品目錄 (产品目录) is more specific.

Is 型錄 the same as 目錄?

They overlap but are not identical. 目錄 is the general word for any catalog or index, while 型錄 is mainly Taiwan and Hong Kong usage for a printed or PDF product brochure with photos and specifications. Product 型錄 in Taiwan would usually be called 產品目錄 in mainland China.

Should my catalog use traditional or simplified Chinese?

Use simplified characters for audiences in mainland China, Singapore, and Malaysia, and traditional characters for Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau. Switching between 目录 and 目錄 is a localization decision, not a translation error. Many companies publish two separate catalog files rather than mixing character sets on one page.