dental

American  

[den-tl] / ˈdɛn tl /

adjective

1. of or relating to the teeth.

2. of or relating to dentistry or a dentist.

3. Phonetics.

   1. (of a speech sound) articulated with the tongue tip touching the back of the upper front teeth or immediately above them, as French t.

   2. alveolar, as English t.

   3. interdental.

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noun

• dentals
  plural

1. Phonetics. a dental sound.

dental British  

/ ˈdɛntəl /

adjective

1. of or relating to the teeth

2. of or relating to dentistry

3. phonetics

   1. pronounced or articulated with the tip of the tongue touching the backs of the upper teeth, as for t in French tout

   2. (esp in the phonology of some languages, such as English) another word for alveolar

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noun

1. phonetics a dental consonant

dental Scientific  

/ dĕn′tl /

1. Relating to the teeth.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• dentality
  noun
• postdental
  adjective
• dentally
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• dentals
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of dental

1585–95; < Medieval Latin dentālis, equivalent to Latin dent- (stem of dēns ) tooth + -ālis -al ¹

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Explanation

The adjective dental describes things that have something to do with teeth. Dental floss is the waxed string you use to clean between your teeth. A dental hygienist is the dentist's assistant, the one who cleans and polishes your teeth. When your dentist's office calls to remind you about your appointment, they might say, "You have a dental cleaning scheduled for next week." In phonetics, a dental is a sound that's made with your tongue touching your top teeth, like th-. In Middle French, dental means "of teeth," from the Latin dens, "tooth."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

dental dentals

There are also strips for pets: Prodogi, a veterinarian-founded startup, released dental strips for dogs this June.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 19, 2026

Sometimes it’s for one-time expenses, like an unexpected dental procedure that costs several hundred dollars.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 7, 2026

Researchers from the College of Biological Sciences and the School of Dentistry examined how these signals shape dental plaque.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 7, 2026

Dahlia Lithwick: In a country that historically did beheadings, hangings, all sorts of objectively gross executions, the decision was made somewhere along the line to medicalize executions, to make it look like dental surgery.

From Slate ● Oct. 6, 2026

Sullenly he packed a travel kit with his toothbrush, dental floss, razor, shaving cream, and a jumbo bottle of aspirin.

From "Hoot" by Carl Hiaasen

But, it seems, not destined for him; Media leaving it to the present proprietor, whether his dentals should change owners or not.

From Mardi: and A Voyage Thither, Vol. I by Herman Melville

Another point to be observed is that the dentals t, d, n, l, require that the tongue touch the teeth, rather than the palate.

From The Roman Pronunciation of Latin Why we use it and how to use it by Frances Ellen Lord

Of what available value reputation, unless wedded to power, dentals, or place?

From Mardi: and A Voyage Thither, Vol. II by Herman Melville

I would not voluntarily be under his manifold rows of dentals.

From Imaginary Conversations and Poems A Selection by Walter Savage Landor

The scales are here represented by triangular dentals, which occupy the entire length of the back.

From Ancient art of the province of Chiriqui, Colombia Sixth Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology to the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, 1884-1885, Government Printing Office, Washington, 1888, pages 3-188 by William Henry Holmes

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