cheek pouch
Refers to the expandable cheek pouches of animals such as monkeys and squirrels, used for storing food.
The monkey stuffed many nuts into its cheek pouches.
samurai face guard; chin-and-cheek mask
A historical piece of armor: an iron mask covering the chin and cheeks, part of a samurai helmet (menpō).
Anadara kagoshimensis (ark clam)
Abbreviation of 猿頰貝 (sarubōgai), a species of ark clam. Used mainly in culinary or biological contexts.
See also: サルボウガイ
At the museum, I saw an iron face guard called a sarubō.
Sarubō is also known as a sushi topping.
猿頰貝 is the full name of the ark clam; 猿頬 is the abbreviated form used in everyday contexts.
Standard kanji spelling; 頬 is a common character for 'cheek'.
Variant using 頰, an older or alternative form of 頬; less common in modern usage.
Compound of 猿 (saru, 'monkey') and 頬 (hō/bō, 'cheek'), literally 'monkey cheek'. The samurai mask sense derives from its resemblance to a monkey's puffed cheeks. The clam name is an abbreviation of 猿頰貝, likely from the shell's shape.