Meaning

Primary

Cavity

Alternatives

Decayed Tooth, Tooth Decay

Word Type

noun, の adjective

Explanation

A tooth bug... Luckily, it's not some bug living in your tooth, though you can see why someone might think this is what happens. A tooth with a "bug" in it is a tooth with a cavity.

Reading

むしば
  • Kyoko
    (Tokyo accent, female)
  • Kenichi
    (Tokyo accent, male)

Explanation

The readings are both kun'yomi, but those are the readings you learned with these kanji. Notice that turns to , though. Presumably this is because you might yell out "BAH!" when you find out you have a cavity.

Context

Patterns of Use

Common Word Combinations

  • 虫歯のリスク

    cavity risk

    虫歯の部分

    cavity area

    虫歯の進行

    cavity progression

Context Sentences

あっ、虫歯が三本もありますよ。

Oh, you have three bad teeth.

また虫歯になっちゃったの?

Do you have a cavity again?

虫歯は予防が大切です。

Prevention is the key to tooth decay.

Kanji Composition