I think there's some confusion in English between 泡沫紅茶 (literally bubble tea) and 珍珠奶茶 (pearl milk tea or boba), because the words bubble and boba sound quite s

I think there's some confusion in English between 泡沫紅茶 (literally bubble tea) and 珍珠奶茶 (pearl milk tea or boba), because the words bubble and boba sound quite similar, particularly for someone speaking English as a second language. The tapioca pearls even look a little like bubbles. Often bubble and boba are used interchangeably now, but I think they originally referred to two different types of tea-based drink, as the Chinese-language names still do. The same shop often sells both types of drink, so this inevitably adds to the confusion. Google image search 泡沫紅茶 and 珍珠奶茶 to see the difference