Gumboil
/ˈɡʌm.bɔɪl/noun
A painful swollen abscess on the gum.
Did you know?Gumboil is a transparent compound of *gum* + *boil*, a brutally literal English name for an oral abscess rather than an ancient occult term.
Etymological Timeline
Old English
OE
gūma
“gum, flesh of the mouth”
Old English
OE
bȳl
“boil, swelling, blister”
Middle English
ME
gome boile / gumboil
“a boil or swelling on the gum”
Modern English
English
gumboil
“a painful abscess on the gum”