Learn Japanese
Words for meal sizes in Japanese
Japanese restaurants often let you choose how big your meal portion is.
This chart shows the main size categories from smallest to largest:
👉 Small → Normal → Big → Extra Big → Extreme Big
1️. Small
Used when you want less food.
Common words:
S (esu) – from “Small”
小 (shou) – small
少なめ (sukuname) – a bit less than normal
ミニ (mini) – mini (same as English “mini”)
半分 (hanbun) – half portion
Example:
ご飯少なめでお願いします。
(Gohan sukuname de onegai shimasu.)
“Please make the rice a little less.”
2️. Normal
This is the standard portion size.
Common words:
M (emu) – from “Medium”
中 (chuu) – medium
並 (nami) – regular / standard
普通 (futsuu) – normal
Example:
ご飯普通でお願いします。
(Gohan futsuu de onegai shimasu.)
“A regular portion of rice, please.”
3️. Big
A larger-than-normal portion.
Common words:
L (eru) – from “Large”
大 (dai) – large
大盛り (oomori) – large serving (very common)
多め (oome) – a bit more
Example:
ご飯大盛りでお願いします。
(Gohan oomori de onegai shimasu.)
“Please make it a large portion of rice.”
4️. Extra Big
An extra-large serving — often bigger than what most people eat.
Common words:
特大 (tokudai) – extra large
特盛 (tokumori) – extra serving / special large
Example:
カレー特盛ください。
(Karee tokumori kudasai.)
“One extra-large curry, please.”
5️. Extreme Big
Humorous or challenge-level sizes!
Used for very, very large portions — often seen in special or “food challenge” menus.
Common words:
メガ盛り (mega mori) – mega size
鬼盛り (oni mori) – “demon-sized” (huge)
激盛り (geki mori) – extremely large
バカ盛り (baka mori) – ridiculously big (literally “stupidly big”)
Example:
メガ盛りチャレンジ！
(Mega mori charenji!)
“Mega-size challenge!”
Notes:
The word 盛り (mori) means “portion” or “serving.”
When ordering food, you can easily adjust the portion by saying:
〜少なめで (〜sukuname de) → “a little less”
〜普通で (〜futsuu de) → “normal”
〜大盛りで (〜oomori de) → “large portion”
Related Post:
How to say eat & drink in Japanese?
What to say when eating in Japan?
