牙科 (yá kē) — dentistry | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

dentistry

Examples

牙科。
Wǒ míng tiān yào qù yá kē jiǎn chá yá.
I'm going to the dental clinic tomorrow to check my teeth.
牙科。
yá kē De shōu fèi hěn gāo.
Dental fees are very high.
牙科。
Tā zài dà xué xué yá kē.
She studies dentistry at university.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

科kēdepartment

牙 tooth and 科 department combine to mean the department of teeth, dentistry.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

禾斗科

Meaning part形符xíngfú

斗斗dòumeasuring tool

Sound part声符shēngfú

禾

禾hé科kē

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

科 pairs 禾, which gives the hé sound, with 斗, a measuring tool.

Appears in

Medicine & Treatment

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