Anatomy

Tongue

A muscular organ in the mouth that is covered with pink tissue called mucosa, tiny bumps called papillae, and thousands of taste buds. The tongue is anchored to the mouth and is vital for chewing, swallowing, and for speech.

National Library of MedicineMedical Subject Headings2026

Structured Summary

Abstract

A muscular organ in the mouth that is covered with pink tissue called mucosa, tiny bumps called papillae, and thousands of taste buds. The tongue is anchored to the mouth and is vital for chewing, swallowing, and for speech.

MeSH Record

Classification

Broader headings

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See Also

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Synonyms

1 entry terms
  • Tongues

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Aspects Covered

24 allowable subheadings

Indexed with the subheadings abnormalities, anatomy & histology, blood supply, chemistry, cytology, diagnostic imaging, drug effects, embryology, enzymology, growth & development, immunology, injuries, innervation, metabolism, microbiology, parasitology, pathology, physiology, physiopathology, radiation effects, surgery, transplantation, ultrastructure, virology.

MeSH Record

Indexing Annotation

/ surg: consider GLOSSECTOMY; inflammation = GLOSSITIS; tongue thrust: index TONGUE HABITS; painful or sore tongue = GLOSSALGIA

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History Note

/abnormalities was TONGUE ABNORMALITIES 1965

MeSH Hierarchy

Tree Numbers

  1. A03w.556w.500w.885w
  2. A14w.549w.885w

MeSH Record

NLM Classification

WI 210

AMA Style

References

  1. National Library of Medicine. Tongue. Medical Subject Headings (MeSH). 2026. Unique ID D014059. http://id.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/2026/D014059
  2. Tongue. In: Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tongue
  3. Tongue. In: Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q9614