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I was reading this two articles:

  1. [Onigiri wikipedia's article](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Onigiri)
  2. [Nigiri explanation inside wikipedia's sushi article](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nigiri#Nigiri-zushi)

I first thought that `onigiri` was a type of sushi but it's not. It calls my
attention how something with similar names mean something so different. So my
question is:

  * What does `nigiri` mean?
  * Does the `o` in the beginning of a word mean something special?
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2012-08-28T15:49:20.203
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2017-03-24T14:13:40.057
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question
meaning food
Onigiri and nigiri
It is a "rice ball", usually with some kind of meat inside and wrapped in
seaweed (similar to sushi). Unlike sushi though, which you hold and eat with
chopsticks, an onigiri is made to hold in the hand.

The o- is an honorific prefix. It is used to give respect to an object or
person, and is done with several choice words (including o-sushi). This
sociolinguistic aspect of the Japanese language is **imperative** to
understand, as some words can often sound harsh and/or insulting if the
honorific prefix is omitted. See [this
article](http://japanese.about.com/library/blqow20.htm) for a more detailed
description.

**edit:**  
[握]{にぎ}り[寿司]{ずし} is a specific kind of sushi. An お[握]{にぎ}り is a rice ball. The
word [握]{にぎ}り alone simply means "a grip or handle" (like a doorknob). They're
all derived from the verb "[握]{にぎ}る", meaning "to grasp". On the second page
you posted, they appear to be using "nigiri" as shorthand for "nigiri-zushi".
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2012-08-28T15:53:08.983
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2012-08-28T18:00:23.663
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answer
Nigiri is a rice ball although it cant be made into a ball since balls of
nigiri and rice bowls with round top is usually an offering to the dead and if
you make a round rice ball and eat it, it is said to bring you very bad luck.
The O in front of nigiri or any other word just makes the word more polite.
Many think nigiri is sushi rice balls but has nothing to do with sushi. It is
just rice balls but onigiri is also the sushi that are rectangle rice balls
with fish or other toppings on it or is rice balls that are made into
triangles with nori on it or not which the rice is plain withought being mixed
with vinegar. Many think sushi is fish on rice but sushi refers mostly to the
rice and nothing to do with fish. The SU in sushi is vinegar so Su= vinegar
SHI = DO SO SUSHI= MADE WITH VINEGAR.

Also Nigiri has another Japanese name called Musubi or Omusubi and the names
is different depending what part of Japan you are in.
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2017-03-15T02:10:57.893
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answer