飲む

• Reading: のむ
• Romaji: nomu
• Kanji breakdown: 飲 (in/no) — to drink
• Pronunciation: /no.mɯ/

Meaning

To drink; to swallow; to take (medicine). A fundamental verb for daily consumption.

A Group 1 (godan) transitive verb with an m-stem (飲ま, 飲み, 飲む, 飲め, 飲も). Besides drinking liquids, it is also the standard verb for taking medicine (薬を飲む). The te-form is 飲んで (with ん sound change typical of m-stem verbs).

Examples

1. 毎日水をたくさん飲みます。 I drink a lot of water every day.
2. コーヒーを飲みながら新聞を読んだ。 I read the newspaper while drinking coffee.
3. 薬を飲んでから寝てください。 Please take your medicine before going to bed.

Usage Guide

Context: daily life, restaurants, medicine

Tone: neutral

Origin & History

From Old Japanese nomu. The kanji 飲 combines 食 (food/eat) with 欠 (yawn/open mouth), representing the act of opening the mouth to consume liquid.

Cultural Context

Era: Ancient

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal