Meaning & use
nom nom nom
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Meanings
interjectioninformalhumorous
A playful sound people make or write to show they are enjoying tasty food.
Grammar: Used alone as a comment or caption; it does not take an object and is rarely part of a longer sentence.
Patterns
- nom nom nom!
- say nom nom nom
- go nom nom nom
The pizza arrived, and she took a big bite: “Nom nom nom!”
He posted a photo of his burger with the caption “nom nom nom.”
When the cake came out, the kids started saying nom nom nom.
interjectioninformalhumorous
Used in writing to represent the sound of noisy eating or munching.
Grammar: Often repeated for effect and placed in quotation marks or on its own line; it can also appear as a verb-like action in informal stories.
Patterns
- go nom nom nom on something
- nom nom nom noises
The baby grabbed the cracker and went nom nom nom all over the table.
I could hear nom nom nom sounds coming from the kitchen.
In the comic, the monster makes a nom nom nom noise as it eats the cookies.
Common combinations
- nom nom nom!
- She looked at the chocolate cake and said, “Nom nom nom!”
- go nom nom nom
- The puppy went nom nom nom on his dinner.
- nom nom nom noises
- We heard happy nom nom nom noises from the next room.
- caption with nom nom nom
- He added a caption with nom nom nom to his food photo.
- say nom nom nom
- My little brother says nom nom nom whenever he sees ice cream.
Synonyms and how they differ
- yum
- Yum shows you think something tastes good, but it does not imitate the sound of eating.
- mmm
- Mmm is a soft sound of pleasure, often used for drinks or smells as well as food.
- chomp
- Chomp is a real verb for biting noisily; nom nom nom is a playful sound effect, not a standard verb.
Word family
- nom interjection
- A shorter, equally playful version of the same eating sound.
- nomming verb
- Informal -ing form meaning eating happily, as in “They were nomming on snacks.”
Commonly confused: nom nom nom or nom de plume? nom nom nom or yum yum?
nom nom nom vs nom de plume
This French phrase means a pen name; it sounds a little like nom nom nom but has nothing to do with food.
nom nom nom vs yum yum
Yum yum also shows enjoyment of food, but it does not copy the sound of chewing.
Practice
Which sentence uses “nom nom nom” in the most natural way?
Choose one answer.
“Nom nom nom” works as a playful comment or sound effect, so it fits inside quotation marks after “said.” The other options try to use it as a regular verb with an object or a purpose, which is not how this interjection works.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “nom nom nom”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.