Meaning & use
gingivitis
Last updated
Meaning
noununcountablemedical
A mild gum disease that makes the gums red, swollen, and likely to bleed.
Grammar: Used without an article: 'She has gingivitis.' Not 'a gingivitis'.
Patterns
- have gingivitis
- treat gingivitis
- gingivitis caused by plaque
The dentist told me that bleeding when I brush is an early sign of gingivitis.
If you don't remove plaque every day, gingivitis can develop.
Regular flossing helps prevent gingivitis.
Common combinations
- severe gingivitis
- Severe gingivitis can make your gums very sore.
- chronic gingivitis
- Chronic gingivitis may last for months if not treated.
- sign of gingivitis
- Bleeding gums are a common sign of gingivitis.
- prevent gingivitis
- Brushing twice a day helps prevent gingivitis.
- gingivitis treatment
- The clinic offers gingivitis treatment for early gum disease.
Synonyms and how they differ
- gum disease
- A general term for any disease of the gums, including more serious forms like periodontitis; gingivitis is only the mild, early stage.
Word family
- gingival adjective
- Relating to the gums, as in 'gingival bleeding'.
- gingivae noun
- The medical plural of 'gingiva', meaning the gums.
Commonly confused: gingivitis or periodontitis?
gingivitis vs periodontitis
Periodontitis is a more serious gum infection that damages the bone around teeth; gingivitis is the earlier, milder stage.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'gingivitis' correctly?
Choose one answer.
'Gingivitis' is uncountable, so it takes no article and has no plural. 'A gingivitis' and 'the gingivitis' wrongly treat it as countable, and 'gingivitises' is not a word.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “gingivitis”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.