1.
windpipe; trachea
The tube that carries air from the throat to the lungs. Used in medical, anatomical, and everyday health contexts.
気管に食べ物が入った。
Food went down my windpipe.
気管が炎症を起こしている。
The trachea is inflamed.
喫煙は気管や肺に大きな負担をかける。
Smoking puts great strain on the windpipe and lungs.
気 here means 'air' or 'breath,' and 管 means 'tube' or 'pipe.' 気管 is the standard term for the trachea, used in both medical and everyday language. The word appears frequently in discussions of respiratory health, choking, and smoking.
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- 気管に入る (to go down the wrong pipe)
- 気管支 (bronchus, bronchial tube)
- 気管支炎 (bronchitis)
- 気管切開 (tracheotomy)
- 気管挿管 (intubation)
SIMILAR WORDS:
- 食道 — esophagus (the tube for food, running parallel to the trachea)
- 喉 — throat (the general area; less specific than 気管)
- 気管支 — bronchi (the branches that split off from the trachea into the lungs)