飯 – Kanji Meaning, Reading, and Common Words

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What does 飯 mean in Japanese?

飯 means cooked rice, and by extension a meal. Its most important word is ご飯 (gohan), which Japanese uses for both rice in the bowl and meals in general: 朝ご飯 is breakfast whether or not rice is served.

The on’yomi ハン appears in ご飯 and its family (朝ご飯, 昼ご飯) and in 炊飯器 (suihanki, rice cooker). The kun’yomi めし (meshi) is a casual word for food or a meal. The left side of the character is the eating radical 食, a strong hint at its meaning.

Reading

On’yomi: ハン (han)

Kun’yomi: めし (meshi)

Basic Information

Kanji 飯
Meaning cooked rice, meal
Stroke Count 12
JLPT Level N4

How to Understand This Kanji

ご飯 (gohan) is the polite everyday word with two layers: literally cooked rice, and figuratively any meal, because rice historically defined the meal. The time words follow: 朝ご飯 (breakfast), 昼ご飯 (lunch), 晩ご飯 or 夕飯 (dinner). めし (meshi) means the same things but is casual and rough-sounding, common in male speech and set phrases like 昼飯 (hirumeshi, lunch). 炊飯器 (suihanki) is the rice cooker found in nearly every Japanese kitchen, and 焼き飯 (yakimeshi) is fried rice.

Common Words

  • ご飯（ごはん / gohan） — cooked rice; meal
  • 朝ご飯（あさごはん / asagohan） — breakfast
  • 昼ご飯（ひるごはん / hirugohan） — lunch
  • 夕飯（ゆうはん / yuuhan） — dinner, evening meal
  • 炊飯器（すいはんき / suihanki） — rice cooker
  • 焼き飯（やきめし / yakimeshi） — fried rice

Example Sentences

  • 朝ご飯にパンとたまごを食べました。

    あさごはんにぱんとたまごをたべました。 / Asagohan ni pan to tamago o tabemashita.

    I had bread and eggs for breakfast.

  • 今晩、家族と夕飯を食べます。

    こんばん、かぞくとゆうはんをたべます。 / Konban, kazoku to yuuhan o tabemasu.

    I am having dinner with my family tonight.

  • 新しい炊飯器でご飯を炊きました。

    あたらしいすいはんきでごはんをたきました。 / Atarashii suihanki de gohan o takimashita.

    I cooked rice in the new rice cooker.

Related Kanji

  • 食

    — Eat/food — the left side of 飯 is the eating radical from 食, and ご飯を食べる (to eat a meal) pairs the two constantly

  • 朝

    — Morning — 朝ご飯 (breakfast) heads the meal family; the time-of-day kanji plus ご飯 names each meal

  • 茶

    — Tea — ご飯とお茶 anchor the traditional Japanese table; the two kanji share the same everyday food contexts

When Learners Usually See This Kanji

Treat ご飯 as your default word and めし as vocabulary you recognize rather than use: めし can sound blunt unless you are speaking very casually with friends.

The meal set is high-frequency: 朝ご飯 (asagohan), 昼ご飯 (hirugohan), 晩ご飯 (bangohan), plus 夕飯 (yuuhan) as a common alternative for dinner. Learn them as one family.

The left half of 飯 is the eating radical (しょくへん), a squeezed form of 食. Kanji with this radical relate to food and eating, so it is one of the most rewarding radicals to recognize early.

Summary

飯 means cooked rice and, by extension, a meal: ご飯 covers both. Learn the meal family 朝ご飯 / 昼ご飯 / 夕飯, keep めし for casual contexts, and spot the eating radical 食 on the left.