牙 Radical 92 — a molar tooth, a fang, a tusk
yá (second tone, rising)
a molar tooth, a fang, a tusk
Radical 924 strokes0 characters
Where the shape comes from
Two interlocking back teeth, upper and lower molars meeting — a close-up view distinct from 齒, which draws the front teeth in a row seen face-on. A plant’s first tooth-like shoot breaking the surface gives 芽, a sprout, bud; paired with 齒 itself in 牙齿, it names the teeth as a whole, the fang-shaped molar standing for the set.
characters filed under 牙
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