餌（えさ、esa）
- food/bait

The Japanese word 餌, pronounced えさ (esa), primarily means "food" or "bait," particularly for animals. It refers to something that is given to an animal to eat. It can also refer to bait used for fishing or trapping animals. The specific meaning depends on the context, but the core concept remains the same: something that serves as sustenance or an enticement for an animal.

⚫︎犬に餌をあげました。 Translation: I gave the dog food. ⚫︎魚を釣るために餌を使いました。 Translation: I used bait to catch fish. ⚫︎鳥の餌を買いに行きます。 Translation: I'm going to buy birdseed (bird food).

This word is commonly used in everyday conversation when talking about feeding animals or using bait. It is versatile and can be applied to a variety of animals, from pets to wild creatures. You can use 餌 in various situations, such as: ⚫︎ When describing the act of feeding an animal. ⚫︎ When discussing the type of food given to an animal. ⚫︎ When referring to bait used for fishing or trapping.

The word is typically written in: ⚫︎ Hiragana: えさ ⚫︎ Kanji: 餌 There are no other common ways to write this word and there are no okurigana variations.

⚫︎ 食べ物（たべもの） - food ⚫︎ エサ - This is the Katakana version of 餌, used more for specific types of "bait" or to emphasize that it's animal food.

While there isn't a direct antonym, words related to not eating or being hungry could be considered opposites in a sense: ⚫︎ 絶食（ぜっしょく） - fasting ⚫︎ 飢餓（きが） - starvation

猫に毎日決まった時間に餌をあげてください。 ・Translation: Please give the cat food at a fixed time every day. ・Explanation: This sentence illustrates how to use 餌 when instructing someone to feed a pet.

この釣り針にはどんな餌がいいですか？ ・Translation: What kind of bait is good for this fishing hook? ・Explanation: This sentence shows 餌 in the context of fishing and asking about the appropriate bait.

The etymology of 餌 is not definitively known, but it is believed to have originated from the general concept of "food" or "something to eat" for animals. The kanji 餌 itself is a combination of radical 飠 (shoku, food) and 耳 (mimi, ear).