teethe
Americanverb (used without object)
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teethes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
teethed,
past participle, past
-
teething
present participle
verb
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
teethesimple
-
teethessimple
-
have teethedperfect
-
has teethedperfect
-
am teethingprogressive
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are teethingprogressive
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is teethingprogressive
-
have been teethingperfect progressive
-
has been teethingperfect progressive
Past
-
teethedsimple
-
had teethedperfect
-
was teethingprogressive
-
were teethingprogressive
-
had been teethingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of teethe
1375–1425; late Middle English tethen, derivative of teth teeth
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
It began when her family moved from Pakistan to the United States when Chaudry was just an infant; her mother filled her bottles with half-and-half and allowed her to teethe on sticks of butter.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 28, 2022
This is a question that political philosophers teethe over constantly: “Are the citizens of a state liable for what it does in their name?”
From Washington Post ● Apr. 21, 2022
After all, Jones says, gums don’t bleed when kids teethe.
From Slate ● May 4, 2015
It soon fell out of the arms of its nurse, Secretary of Commerce Harry Hopkins, who in his oversold Des Moines speech last February failed to give it anything but words to teethe on.
From Time Magazine Archive
Horehound tea was for colds, and elderberry tea was to help babies teethe easier.
From Slave Narratives: A Folk History of Slavery in the United States From Interviews with Former Slaves Georgia Narratives, Part 2 by Work Projects Administration
Dey better send out to dat ole mule and git you some teethes.
From De Turkey and De Law A Comedy in Three Acts by Zora Neale Hurston
This is a complaint allied to chicken-pox in children, and by no means dangerous—in fact, a puppy which teethes with such a rash has generally the making of a strong and healthy dog.
From A Manual of Toy Dogs How to breed, rear, and feed them by Mrs. Leslie Williams
He teethed on a toy bat as an infant and grew up hoping to become the ’ right fielder, joking that Al Kaline beat him to it.
From New York Times ● Aug. 7, 2010
But he might have given his story the bite of reality if he had teethed on anything but slick paper.
From Time Magazine Archive
During that time and for years previously many of the infants of France have teethed upon a vile form of rubber nipple attached to a ring.
From Time Magazine Archive
O'Rourke, 40, a baby boomer who seems to have teethed on brass knuckles and suckled on bile.
From Time Magazine Archive
She teethed on Miss Patty Cake’s arms and legs, ate her hair when she didn’t know better, squeezed her, slept with her, fed her, and sang to her.
From "One Crazy Summer" by Rita Williams-Garcia
But Kenya’s effort to modernize the system is encountering teething problems.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 5, 2026
Smart meter rollouts in the rest of the UK and in Ireland had no shortage of teething problems.
From BBC ● Apr. 28, 2026
It's extremely tempting to write a segue here about Wolf's career having had its own teething troubles – but, in truth, it's been more of a slow burn on a long fuse.
From BBC ● Apr. 28, 2026
Speaking on a podcast in September, Musk said that the vehicle “might have some initial teething pains because it’s such a radical redesign.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 21, 2025
“Someone should give that beast a teething ring,” she said, shaking her head.
From "The Ear, the Eye, and the Arm" by Nancy Farmer
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
