Chinese word

牙龈

Pronunciation

Pinyinyá yín

Meaning

  • noungums

Example

我觉得牙龈疼。wǒ jué de yá yín téng

I feel like my gums hurt.

Illustration for 牙龈 (gums)

More examples

吃冷的东西时，牙龈会疼。chī lěng de dōng xī shí yá yín huì téng

When I eat cold things, my gums hurt.

Core concept

A soft border of tissue hugs each tooth and shields the root beneath it.

Common phrases

  • 牙龈疼yá yín téng

    sore gums

  • 牙龈出血yá yín chū xuè

    bleeding gums

  • 牙龈发炎yá yín fā yán

    inflamed gums

Similar words

牙肉yá ròu: Soft tissue around the teeth, referred to in casual everyday speech.

Definition in Chinese

牙龈是紧贴牙齿周围、保护牙根的柔软组织，平时起保护作用，长期炎症可导致肿胀、出血和牙周问题。yá yín shì jǐn tiē yá chǐ zhōu wéi bǎo hù yá gēn de róu ruǎn zǔ zhī píng shí qǐ bǎo hù zuò yòng cháng qī yán zhèng kě dǎo zhì zhǒng zhàng chū xuè hé yá zhōu wèn tí

Word origin

The compound 牙龈 (yáyín, "gums") joins 牙 (yá, "tooth") and 龈 (yín, "gums"), so its structure points to the tissue around a tooth.

Usage tips

  • 牙龈 (yáyín, "gums") usually refers to the gum area as a whole in Chinese, while English can use singular gum for one spot and plural gums for the mouth area.

Related words

  • 牙龈炎yá yín yángingivitisnoun
  • 牙龈出血yá yín chū xuèbleeding gumsnoun

Word lists with this word