餅
[mo̞t͡ɕi]
The English phrase "rice cake" is translated into Japanese as 餅.
The term 餅 refers specifically to the traditional Japanese pounded rice cake, which is much stickier and denser than Western-style rice cakes.
Meaning: sticky food item made from rice flour (noun)
When do people say it?
The traditional process of making this rice cake by pounding it with a large wooden mallet is called 餅つき (mochitsuki).
Did you know?
- Some regions of Japan have a tradition of 餅花, where small pieces of 餅 are attached to branches to look like cherry blossoms to pray for a good harvest.
- The phrase 餅は餅屋 literally means 'for rice cakes, go to the rice cake shop', and is used as an idiom to mean that you should leave a task to a professional.
- During the New Year, 鏡餅 or 'mirror rice cakes' are displayed as offerings to the gods and are later broken and eaten in a ritual called 鏡開き.
Examples in context
- お正月は、お餅を食べます。Oshōgatsu wa, omochi o tabemasu.We eat rice cakes during the New Year.
- このお餅はとても柔らかいです。Kono omochi wa totemo yawarakai desu.This rice cake is very soft.
- お餅を焼いて食べましょう。Omochi o yaite tabemashō.Let's grill some rice cakes and eat them.
Example conversation
Yota and Yui are preparing snacks at home.
- 陽太 Yota結衣、餅を食べたいです。Yui, mochi o tabetai desu.Yui, I want to eat some rice cakes.
- 結衣 Yuiいいですね。どうやって食べますか？Ii desu ne. Dō yatte tabemasu ka?That sounds good. How do you want to eat them?
- 陽太 Yota醤油をつけて食べたいです。Shōyu o tsukete tabetai desu.I want to eat them with soy sauce.
- 結衣 Yuiわかりました。準備しますね。Wakarimashita. Junbi shimasu ne.I understand. I will prepare them.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry 餅, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
