caries C2+ Topic:The Human Body US /ˈkɛriz/ UK /ˈkeəriːz/ See IPA manual Meanings 1 noun decay and crumbling of a tooth or bone Regular brushing helps prevent dental caries. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 noun · decay and crumbling of a... decayrotcavitydecomposition Word family Derived forms carious Etymology AI details From Latin cariēs ('decay, rottenness'), perhaps from a Proto-Indo-European root *ker- ('to harm, decay'). cariēs Latin *ker- Proto-Indo-European View etymology graph -> Topics The Human Body External links Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary Google Images # caries **Type:** Word **Level:** C2+ **Part of speech:** noun **IPA (US):** /ˈkɛriz/ **IPA (UK):** /ˈkeəriːz/ ## Meanings 1. decay and crumbling of a tooth or bone ## Examples - Regular brushing helps prevent dental caries. ## Synonyms - decay - rot - cavity - decomposition ## Derived Forms - carious ## Roots and Affixes - Root: cariēs - Root: *ker- ## Etymology From Latin cariēs ('decay, rottenness'), perhaps from a Proto-Indo-European root *ker- ('to harm, decay'). ## AI Etymology Caries comes from Latin cariēs ('decay, rottenness'), perhaps from a Proto-Indo-European root *ker- ('to harm, decay'). The historical trail runs through cariēs in Latin and *ker- in Proto-Indo-European. Used as a noun, caries now means "decay and crumbling of a tooth or bone", so the present definition can be read against the older forms and meanings. The same lexical family is also visible in derived forms such as carious. The result is a borrowed or transmitted form whose modern spelling carries a compact record of its route into English. ## Topics - The Human Body markdown