Meanings
plural sashimis
- uncountableusuallyA dish consisting of thin slices or pieces of raw fish or meat.
“I want three sashimis and one large squid tempura. And get the man another drink.” The geisha bowed.
1979, Jim Harrison, chapter 4, in Legends of the Fall, New York, N.Y.: Grove Press, published 2016, →ISBN, page 1782 more examples
A sashimi of beef—thin peppered strips seared to a point just past rawness—was served with a frothy dressing of egg whites whipped with mustard and herbs, including tarragon and chives. The two sashimis may be the only dishes I enjoyed at La Petite Chaya that are still on the menu, […]
1983 November, Caroline Bates, “Spécialités de la Maison—California: Bernard’s, The Grand House, La Petite Chaya”, in Jane Montant, editor, Gourmet: The Magazine of Good Living, volume XLIII, number 11, New York, N.Y.: Gourmet, Inc., →ISSN, →OCLC, page 90, column 2“Two Caesars to begin, mine with extra anchovies,” Carlsson says, “then, let’s see, Miss Preston’s a fish lover, so do the tuna and sand dab sashimi as a main for her, and I’ll have the free-range as usual.” / “One sashimi, one chicken. Very good, sir.”
1996, Michael M[ackenzie] Thomas, “Part Two: A Baker’s Dozen”, in Baker’s Dozen: A Novel, New York, N.Y.: Farrar Straus Giroux, →ISBN, section II, page 88 - countablerareusuallyA thin slice or piece of raw fish or meat.
“Maybe I will have one of these sashimi,” I said, reaching for a slimy pink glob.
2012, Laura Levine, chapter 13, in Death of a Neighborhood Witch (A Jaine Austen Mystery; 11), New York, N.Y.: Kensington Books, →ISBN, page 1195 more examples
The display and garnishing of the sashimi is an important testing ground for the chef’s artistic originality. After all, the fish are raw, and beyond making sure that they are fresh and of high quality, there is little to be done about the flavor. Therefore the chef must become an artist if the sashimi are to be memorable.
1977, Thomas Hoover, “Private Zen: Flowers and Food”, in Zen Culture, New York, N.Y.: Random House, →ISBN, part III (The Rise of Popular Zen Culture: 1573 to the Present), page 221You will recall that, contrary to the relative appearance of the words, the sashimi are the simple raw fish slices and the sushi are the rolls of rice and raw fish.
1983 May 31, Robert Nadeau, “Restaurant: Gyuhama of Japan: Suit yourself with sushi”, in Richard M. Gaines, editor, The Boston Phoenix, volume XII, number 22, Boston, Mass.: Boston Phoenix Inc., →ISSN, →OCLC, section 2, page 10, column 3The remarkable news is that all the sashimi were quite fresh — hard to achieve in a small restaurant.
1983 December 27, Robert Nadeau, “Restaurant: Edo Restaurant: Not Zen but simple”, in Richard M. Gaines, editor, The Boston Phoenix, volume XII, number 52, Boston, Mass.: Boston Phoenix Inc., →ISSN, →OCLC, section 2, page 10, column 4It is customary to serve sashimi in odd numbers, which are considered lucky, and servings of five sashimi are common. Thus, the small flat dish in which the soy sauce comes is large enough, but not too large, for one sashimi at a time.
2009, Lucien Ellington, “Food as Art”, in Japan (Asia in Focus), Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO, →ISBN, chapter 6 (Culture), “Food” section, page 294Nudge the photo over (using keyboard arrow keys if you like) so that the sashimi are well situated in the frame.
2020, Joyce Walsh, “Design + Software Skills 5.1: InDesign Place Image and Path Layout”, in Graphic Design Essentials: With Adobe Software, 2nd edition, New York, N.Y.: Bloomsbury Visual Arts, →ISBN, chapter 5 (Layouts), page 143
Origin
Borrowed from Japanese 刺身(さしみ) (sashimi, “sticking into; slicing + flesh, meat”), from the way the flesh of the fish is sliced
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Arabic سَاشِيمِي
- سَاشِيمِي (sāšīmī)dish of slices of raw fish or meat
Bengali সাশিমি
- সাশিমি (śaśimi)dish of slices of raw fish or meat
Bulgarian саши́ми
- саши́ми (sašími)dish of slices of raw fish or meat
Chinese Cantonese 刺身, 魚生 /鱼生
- 刺身 (ci³ san¹)dish of slices of raw fish or meat
- 魚生 /鱼生 (jyu⁴ saang¹)dish of slices of raw fish or meat
- 生魚片 /生鱼片dish of slices of raw fish or meat
Chinese Mandarin 刺身, 魚生 /鱼生
- 刺身 (cìshēn)dish of slices of raw fish or meat
- 魚生 /鱼生 (yúshēng)dish of slices of raw fish or meat
- 生魚片 /生鱼片 (shēngyúpiàn)dish of slices of raw fish or meat
- 撒西米 (sāxīmǐ)dish of slices of raw fish or meat
- 沙西米 (shāxīmǐ)dish of slices of raw fish or meat
Czech sašimi
- sašimidish of slices of raw fish or meat
Esperanto saŝimo
- saŝimodish of slices of raw fish or meat
Finnish sashimi
- sashimidish of slices of raw fish or meat
French sashimi
- sashimidish of slices of raw fish or meat
German Sashimi
- Sashimidish of slices of raw fish or meat
Greek σασίμι
- σασίμι (sasími)dish of slices of raw fish or meat
Hebrew סָשִׁימִי
- סָשִׁימִי (sashími)dish of slices of raw fish or meat
Hindi साशिमी, सशिमी
- साशिमी (sāśimī)dish of slices of raw fish or meat
- सशिमी (saśimī)dish of slices of raw fish or meat
Hungarian szasimi
- szasimidish of slices of raw fish or meat
Indonesian sashimi
- sashimidish of slices of raw fish or meat
Japanese 刺身
- 刺身 (sashimi)dish of slices of raw fish or meat
Korean 생선회, 사시미
- 생선회 (saengseonhoe)dish of slices of raw fish or meat
- 사시미 (sasimi)dish of slices of raw fish or meat
Malay sasyimi
- sasyimidish of slices of raw fish or meat
Polish sashimi
- sashimidish of slices of raw fish or meat
Portuguese sashimi
- sashimidish of slices of raw fish or meat
Russian саши́ми, саси́ми
- саши́ми (sašími)dish of slices of raw fish or meat
- саси́ми (sasími)dish of slices of raw fish or meat
Slovak sašimi
- sašimidish of slices of raw fish or meat
Spanish sashimi
- sashimidish of slices of raw fish or meat
Tamil சசிமீ, சாசிமீ
- சசிமீ (cacimī)dish of slices of raw fish or meat
- சாசிமீ (cācimī)dish of slices of raw fish or meat
Thai ซาชิมิ
- ซาชิมิ (saa-chí-mí)dish of slices of raw fish or meat
Turkish saşimi
- saşimidish of slices of raw fish or meat
Ukrainian саші́мі
- саші́мі (sašími)dish of slices of raw fish or meat
Urdu ساشِمی, سَشِمی
- ساشِمی (sāśimī)dish of slices of raw fish or meat
- سَشِمی (saśimī)dish of slices of raw fish or meat
Welsh sashimi
- sashimidish of slices of raw fish or meat
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with sashimi
Anagrams
Cite this entry
sashimi. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sashimi
“sashimi.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sashimi. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “sashimi,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sashimi.
Source: sashimi on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.