dentifrice

American  

[den-tuh-fris] / ˈdɛn tə frɪs /

noun

1. a paste, powder, liquid, or other preparation for cleaning the teeth.

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dentifrice British  

/ ˈdɛntɪfrɪs /

noun

1. any substance, esp paste or powder, for use in cleaning the teeth

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Etymology

Origin of dentifrice

First recorded in 1450–1500; from Middle French, from Latin dentifricium “tooth powder, tooth paste,” equivalent to denti- denti- + fric(āre) “to rub” + -ium -ium

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Explanation

Dentifrice is a fancy word for the stuff you put on your toothbrush to clean your teeth — in other words, dentifrice is toothpaste. In the 15th century, the equivalent word was dentifricie, and it meant "substance used for cleaning the teeth," from the Latin dentifricium, "powder for rubbing the teeth." The roots are dentis, "tooth," and fricare, "to rub," and that describes exactly how to use dentifrice. Your preferred form of dentifrice may be mint-flavored toothpaste, but many people use tooth powder instead, on a finger or a toothbrush.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

dentifrice

But who does not use a "dentifrice" instead?

From Time Magazine Archive

The girls marched past progressively tougher words, from heroine, blossom and dentifrice to operose, miscible and quadrumanous.

From Time Magazine Archive

They offer nothing more than a two-hour supply of mouth froth, a dentifrice rather than a drama.

From Time Magazine Archive

The wary consumer may be convinced that some dread disease will steal upon him if he does not use a certain dentifrice.

From Time Magazine Archive

Children especially should be taught to use the tooth-brush and some reliable dentifrice.

From The Handy Cyclopedia of Things Worth Knowing A Manual of Ready Reference by Joseph Triemens

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