also: まま
Children's word for food or a meal, similar to 'yum-yum' or 'num-num' in English. Used by or to small children.
Come on, it's time for num-nums.
Yum-yum, it's tasty, isn't it?
Only with reading まま
Dated term for cooked rice, restricted to the reading まま. Not commonly used in modern Japanese; ごはん is the usual word.
In the old days, they used a pot to cook rice.
rice mixed with miso soup or bonito flakes; cat food (literal)
Kanji spelling exists but is rarely used; the word is usually written in kana.
Alternate kana spelling, also used in children's language. Sense 2 (cooked rice) is restricted to this reading.
A children's word, likely derived from baby-talk reduplication of ま (ma), possibly related to めし (meshi, 'meal') or まんまん (an old children's word for food). The exact origin is uncertain.