noun
Anatomical term for the side of the forehead; commonly used in everyday language.
こめかみがズキズキ痛む。
My temple is throbbing with pain.
彼はこめかみを指で押さえた。
He pressed his temple with his finger.
Rare kanji form; the characters are ateji for the temple.
Rare single-character kanji form for the temple.
側頭 is a more formal, medical term for the temporal region, while こめかみ is the common everyday word.
The origin is uncertain, but it may be related to 米噛み (komekami, 'rice chewing'), referring to the movement of the temple when chewing.