Word
nom
/ˈnɑm/
Definitions
02to eat with pleasure
v. to eat something with a lot of enjoyment, often making noise.
v. to consume food with audible or visible relish.
“The puppy started to nom on his new treats immediately.”
“We watched the rabbit happily nomming its way through a pile of fresh clover.”
Informal · Slang
Usage
Frequently used in the progressive 'nomming'.
Teaching tip
Mostly used when talking about pets or in a cute, playful way on the internet.
03a nomination
n. a short way to say 'nomination', especially for an award.
n. a clipping of 'nomination', typically used in the context of entertainment awards or political appointments.
“The actress was so excited to get an Oscar nom for her first movie.”
“After the surprise nom for Best Director, the studio increased the film's marketing budget significantly.”
Informal
Usage
Common in headlines and casual conversation about awards.
Teaching tip
Learners should use the full word 'nomination' in any formal writing or professional emails.
Synonyms
Real-World Examples
“Farley told ABC’s Insiders One Nation’s net overseas migration (Nom) target was 130,000 but said an additional 100,000 migrant workers, including skilled workers and backpackers, were not included in that figure.” “Schérer gallantly used a nom de plume, Gilbert Cordier, to shield his Catholic family from scandal, but he needn’t have bothered as his concerns were unfounded.” Etymology
Short form of various words.
Onomatopoeic, variant of num, num-num. Attested 2004 as om nom, om nom nom, popularized from 2007 in internet use, second place in the American Dialect Society’s "Word of the Year" 2010. From the catchphrase of Cookie Monster on Sesame Street, as at the end of “C Is For Cookie” (1971), made when devouring cookies. However, as late as 2009, this was canonically written with a ‘u’, as in S is for School! (2006), as “num num”, or in the press kit for the 40th season (2009), as “un num num num num”; by 2013 this was changed to the now-popular nom.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/nom