ngaa4 juk6牙肉
Jyutpingngaa4 juk6
Yalengàh yuhk
Definition
Gums; the soft tissue surrounding the base of the teeth.
colloquialbodyhealth
How it's used
Refers specifically to the soft tissue surrounding the teeth, functioning as the standard term in both medical and casual contexts. While Mandarin speakers might use 牙齦, Cantonese speakers almost exclusively use 牙肉 in daily life. It is commonly paired with verbs like 腫 or 流血 to describe dental issues.
Measure word
gau6嚿gauhExamples
My tooth hurts so much, even my gums are swollen.
Do your gums bleed when you brush your teeth?
Related words
Common mistake
Do not confuse this with 牙齒, which refers to the hard tooth itself. Using 牙肉 when you mean the tooth will cause confusion, as it strictly refers to the soft tissue.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
Particle
Connector
Grammar guides
- LocationHow to say where something is using 喺 (hai2), place words like 度, and the common coverbs that work like English prepositions.
- Serial verbsStringing two or more verbs together without any joining word, like go to the shop buy things. Extremely common in Cantonese.
- 將 disposalHow to move the object in front of the verb with 將, to focus on what happens to it. Common in instructions and writing.
