蜜
also: みち
Meanings
Sweet liquid produced by flowers to attract pollinators.
Bees gathering nectar from flowers.
The sweet, viscous food substance made by bees. Commonly used in cooking and as a sweetener.
I spread honey on bread and eat it.
honeydew
A sugary liquid secreted by aphids and some other insects, often found on plant leaves.
The honeydew excreted by aphids makes the leaves sticky.
Thick, dark syrup produced during sugar refining. Less common than 糖蜜 (とうみつ) in modern Japanese.
Molasses is obtained as a byproduct at sugar refineries.
Visible as dark, translucent patches inside an apple, caused by sorbitol accumulation. Sometimes called 蜜入りりんご (honey-filled apple).
This apple has sorbitol patches and is sweet.
Usage patterns
- 〈虫〉が蜜を吸うfor an insect to suck nectar
The bee is sucking nectar from the flower.
- 〈物〉に蜜をかけるto drizzle honey over something
I drizzled honey over the pancakes and ate them.
- 蜜を採るto harvest honey (from a hive)
The beekeeper harvests honey from the hive.
- 〈物〉に蜜が入るfor an apple to develop honey-like translucent patches inside
This apple has honey patches inside and is sweet.
Expressions
- 他人の不幸は蜜の味the misfortune of others tastes as sweet as honey
- 口に蜜あり腹に剣ありhoney in the mouth, a sword in the belly