You know the small painful white bumps you sometimes get on your tounge? My mother called them “lie bumps” because you got one if you told a lie. What are they really?
I’ve heard they’re inflamed taste buds.
I’ve never gotten those, but I do get bumps on the roof of my mouth towards the back. It occurs with no regularity. Usually it’s from spicy and/or acidic foods, but not always, Sometimes a ghlass of OJ will make them appear, but usually not. Completly random, midly annoyiong, but not really painful.
My father always called them ulcers, though I’m not sure if this is the correct term for them.
I get them usually after indulging too much in sour candies. I call them flavor blisters.
Ditto. Get them more often than the average bear.
Naaaah… not cankers… We’re talking about on the tongue itself. They look like little white bumps.
I suppose they’re what my mom called (translated from the original Norwegian) liar’s blister. And with that name I always just assumed they were… blisters… 
I think it’s an inflamed papillae, which is the visible bump on the tongue that contains the taste buds.
Another vote for spingears canker sores. The site has pictures, and says they also occur on the tongue.
When I have one, I always use Pyralvex.. Helps almost intantly and tastes pleasantly in an interesting way.
My dentist told me that my frequent mouth sores were caused by an allergy to Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, which is a common toothpaste ingredient. After switching to a brand that does not contain it, I hardly ever get them. It is unbelievably difficult to find toothpaste that doesn’t contain it, and I have occasionally switched to straight baking soda when it was not available.
Don’t cut them off with nail clippers. It hurts. :smack:
I get those too, but I’ve never heard about them from anyone else. They’re like little blisters that break easily and painlessly.
I also get what’s being described in the OP, and they’re not canker sores (which I am currently suffering from). These are exactly the size of a taste bud, but white, sore, and mildly swollen. I usually get them on the tip of my tongue after eating a bunch of sour candy like lemonheads or lucas. They do seem to be inflamed tastebuds.
I always called them ulcers as well.
I think you mean the papillae, not the taste bud. The visible bump on the tongue is a papillae, which contains tastebuds, which I do not think are visible to the naked eye.
I used to suffer from canker sores (until I switched to a non-SLS toothpaste, as mentioned by orangetruck; I haven’t had one in years), and they are not the same thing as the painful inflamed bump described in the OP.
Although, interestingly, I haven’t had one of those, either, since switching toothpaste. Hmmm.