飯
めし · meshi · JLPT N3 · noun
meal
🍚 meshi sounds like mess, as in a mess hall where soldiers get their meals
The kanji is 食 (eat) on the left plus 反 (han), which gives the sound. That is why ご飯 is read gohan. めし is the casual, rough word for a meal; men often say it, as in 飯食おう (let's eat).