This paper analyzes how the meaning associated with the word “shikohin” evolved and was extended in the Meiji era. “Shikohin” was originally introduced as a word for knowledge of German hygiene in a textbook translated by Goto Shinpei, who worked for the Board of Health. Soon after, in a fast-changing environment of consumption, “shikohin” was used in the public relations magazine ‘Shiko’, where it connoted not only a knowledge of hygiene but also knowledge relevant to taste.