molar

[moh-ler]

noun

Also called molar tooth. a tooth having a broad biting surface adapted for grinding, being one of twelve in humans, with three on each side of the upper and lower jaws.

adjective

adapted for grinding, as teeth.

pertaining to such teeth.

Origin of molar

1535–45; < Latin molāris grinder, short for (dēns) molāris grinding (tooth), equivalent to mol(a) millstone + -āris -ar¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for molars

ivory, snag, tush, tusk, molar, premolar, fang, cuspid, bicuspid, incisor, eyetooth, dicer, mincer, axe, point, canine, tine, dent, grinder, serration

Examples from the Web for molars

Contemporary Examples of molars

We have teeth that allow us to grind plants (molars) or tear flesh (incisors).
The Top 10 Diets of 2013 Are All Useless (Except to Book Publishers)
Kent Sepkowitz
December 29, 2013

Historical Examples of molars

The hind teeth, consisting of premolars and molars, are used for grinding.
The Meaning of Evolution
Samuel Christian Schmucker
The state of the alveoli and the teeth, shows that the molars had not yet pierced the gum.
On Some Fossil Remains of Man
Thomas H. Huxley
After filling thirty-eight molars in this way I stopped for developments.
Tin Foil and Its Combinations for Filling Teeth
Henry L. Ambler
They crush or grind the food, and are hence called “molars.”
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 17, Slice 5
Various
There are twenty teeth; in each jaw there are eight molars and two incisors.
In Beaver World
Enos Abijah Mills

British Dictionary definitions for molars

molar

noun

any of the 12 broad-faced grinding teeth in man

a corresponding tooth in other mammals

adjective

of, relating to, or designating any of these teeth

used for or capable of grinding

Word Origin for molar

C16: from Latin molāris for grinding, from mola millstone

molar

adjective

(of a physical quantity) per unit amount of substancemolar volume

(not recommended in technical usage) (of a solution) containing one mole of solute per litre of solution

Word Origin for molar

C19: from Latin mōlēs a mass

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for molars

molar

"grinding tooth," mid-14c., from Latin molaris dens "grinding tooth," from mola "millstone," from PIE root *mel- "to rub, grind" (see mill (n.1)). As an adjective in this sense from 1620s. In Old English they were cweornteð "quern-teeth."

molar

adj.

in chemistry, "pertaining to one mole," 1902, from mole (4) + -ar.

molars in Science

molar

[mō′lər]

Chemistry

Relating to a mole.

Containing one mole of solute per liter of solution.

molar

[mō′lər]

Any of the teeth located toward the back of the jaws, having broad crowns for grinding food. Adult humans have 12 molars.

molars in Culture

molars

[(moh-luhrz)]

The teeth with broad surfaces at the back of the mouth that serve to grind food. Including the wisdom teeth, adults have twelve molars — six on the top and six on the bottom. (Compare incisors and canines.)