Definition
To drink something, such as water, tea, or juice.
Example
毎朝、コーヒーを一杯飲む。
Show translation
Every morning, I drink one cup of coffee.
Etymology
From Old Japanese *nomu*, traced to classical Japanese 飲む (*nomu*), consistently used for ingesting liquids throughout the language's written history. The kanji 飲 (food radical 食 + phonetic component 欠) depicts a person opening their mouth to drink.
Cultural note
In Japanese culture, 飲む is used broadly: it covers drinking beverages, but also swallowing pills (薬を飲む, *kusuri wo nomu*). At social gatherings, the phrase 飲み会 (*nomikai*, "drinking party") is a cornerstone of workplace culture — declining too often can be a social faux pas. Note that 飲む is NOT used for eating soup; for that, 食べる (*taberu*) or 飲む can both apply depending on context, though 飲む is preferred for fully liquid soups.