Meanings
plural onigiris
- A Japanese food made by putting ingredients into white rice, wrapping the outside with laver, and shaping it into a triangle.
He cooks his breakfast of rice and misoshiru and packs onigiri rice balls for his lunch.
2009, Kiyo Sato, Kiyo's Story1 more example
The sprawling multipage menu offers cleanly executed dishes meant to accompany the sake, including standards like boiled edamame, and the filling rice balls called onigiri that you would expect at any izakaya, or Japanese pub.
2007 January 28, “Island Within an Island”, in New York TimesSynonyms: musubi, omusubi, Japanese rice ball
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA Japanese food made by putting ingredients into white rice, wrapping the outside with laver, and shaping it into a triangle.
Origin
- Japaneseお握り
- Englishonigiri
Borrowed from Japanese お握り (onigiri).
More words from Japanese
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Arabic أُونِيجِيرِي
- أُونِيجِيرِي (ʔūnījīrī)Japanese rice ball
Bengali ওনিগিরি
- ওনিগিরি (ōnigiri)Japanese rice ball
Chinese Mandarin 飯糰 /饭团
- 飯糰 /饭团 (fàntuán)Japanese rice ball
Finnish onigiri
- onigiriJapanese rice ball
German Onigiri
- OnigiriJapanese rice ball
Greek ονιγκίρι
- ονιγκίρι (onigkíri)Japanese rice ball
Hindi ओनिगिरी
- ओनिगिरी (onigirī)Japanese rice ball
Italian onigiri
- onigiriJapanese rice ball
Japanese お握り
- お握り (onigiri)Japanese rice ball
Korean 오니기리, 삼각김밥
- 오니기리 (onigiri)Japanese rice ball
- 삼각김밥 (samgakgimbap)Japanese rice ball
Malay nasi kepal, onigiri
- nasi kepalJapanese rice ball
- onigiriJapanese rice ball
Polish onigiri
- onigiriJapanese rice ball
Portuguese oniguiri
- oniguiriJapanese rice ball
Punjabi ਓਨਿਗਿਰੀ
- ਓਨਿਗਿਰੀ (onigirī)Japanese rice ball
Russian ониги́ри
- ониги́ри (onigíri)Japanese rice ball
Tagalog onigiri
- onigiriJapanese rice ball
Tamil ஒநிகிரி
- ஒநிகிரி (onikiri)Japanese rice ball
Thai โอนิงิริ, ข้าวปั้น
- โอนิงิริ (oo-ní-ngí-rí)Japanese rice ball
- ข้าวปั้น (kâaw-pân)Japanese rice ball
Turkish onigiri
- onigiriJapanese rice ball
Ukrainian оніґірі
- оніґірі (onigiri)Japanese rice ball
Cite this entry
onigiri. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/onigiri
“onigiri.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/onigiri. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “onigiri,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/onigiri.
Source: onigiri on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.