虫歯

Japanese

虫歯 (mushiba): a cavity, a decayed tooth.

Kanji in this term
虫	歯
むし Grade: 1	は > ば Grade: 3
kun’yomi

Alternative spelling
蟲齒 (kyūjitai)

Etymology

Compound of 虫 (mushi, “worm, bug”) +‎ 歯 (ha, “tooth”).[1][2] The ha changes to ba as an instance of rendaku (連濁).

Pronunciation

Kun’yomi

(Tokyo) むしば [mùshíbá] (Heiban – [0])[2]
IPA^(key): [mɯ̟ᵝɕiba̠]

Noun

虫(むし)歯(ば) • (mushiba)

a bad tooth, dental caries, a cavity

Synonyms

虫齧歯(むしかめば) (mushikameba)
虫食(むしく)い (mushikui)
虫食(むしく)い歯(ば) (mushikuiba)
齲歯(うし) (ushi)
齲蝕(うしょく) (ushoku)

References

1988, 国語大辞典（新装版） (Kokugo Dai Jiten, Revised Edition) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan
2006, 大辞林 (Daijirin), Third Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN

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