点眼薬(てんがんやく)

Compound of 点眼(てんがん) ('instilling drops in the eye') and 薬(やく) ('medicine'). The formal pharmaceutical and medical term for eye drops. In everyday conversation, 目薬(めぐすり) is far more common.

Usage

• Used on product packaging, in medical instructions, and by healthcare professionals
• Patients speaking with doctors may hear this term, but would typically say 目薬(めぐすり) themselves
• The verb for applying eye drops is 差(さ)す or 点眼(てんがん)する

Common collocations

• 点眼薬(てんがんやく)を差(さ)す: to apply eye drops
• 点眼薬(てんがんやく)を処方(しょほう)する: to prescribe eye drops
• 抗菌(こうきん)点眼薬(てんがんやく): antibacterial eye drops
• 市販(しはん)の点眼薬(てんがんやく): over-the-counter eye drops

Similar words

• 目薬(めぐすり): eye drops — the everyday word, used in casual conversation
• 外用薬(がいようやく): external medicine — any medication applied to the body's surface, not taken internally
• 点鼻薬(てんびやく): nasal drops — analogous compound for nose medication