dental

1 of 2

adjective

den·​tal ˈden-tᵊl How to pronounce dental (audio)
1
: of or relating to the teeth or dentistry
2
: articulated with the tip or blade of the tongue against or near the upper front teeth
dentally adverb

dental

2 of 2

noun

: a dental consonant

Examples of dental in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
The El Cajon Police Department responded to gunshots at a dental office Thursday and discovered two men and a woman shot. Liam Quinn, Peoplemag, 4 Mar. 2024 One person was killed and two others wounded when a gunman opened fire in a dental office in the Southern California city of El Cajon on Thursday afternoon, authorities said. Faris Tanyos, CBS News, 1 Mar. 2024 One person was killed and two others wounded when a gunman opened fire in a San Diego County dental office Thursday afternoon. Nathan Solis, Los Angeles Times, 1 Mar. 2024 The campus features a health center, dental clinic, on-site case management, and spaces where visiting professionals can offer services like legal advice and employment help. Families and adults transitioning from homelessness live in interim residences on one end of the campus. Francine Kiefer, The Christian Science Monitor, 1 Mar. 2024 Although scientists can’t tell exactly what an animal has eaten from analyzing its teeth, Burg Mayer’s team was able to glean clues about the sharks’ diets and rankings as predators by comparing different forms of nitrogen, called isotopes, between the two dental sets. Sarah Sloat, Smithsonian Magazine, 29 Feb. 2024 At home, women often carry the mental load of remembering to buy birthday party presents for the weekend, to book the family’s dental appointments, and to ensure homework gets done before dinner. Melissa A. Wheeler, Forbes, 27 Feb. 2024 One of the selling points for MA is that virtually all individual MA plans now offer at least one extra benefit, such as vision, dental, or fitness benefits. Deb Gordon, Forbes, 22 Feb. 2024 The medical and dental examinations to determine her identity and cause of death were inconclusive, and she was entered into the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) as an unidentified decedent on June 29, 1992. Marina Johnson, The Indianapolis Star, 21 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'dental.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Latin dentalis, from dent-, dens

First Known Use

Adjective

1594, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

circa 1727, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of dental was in 1594

Dictionary Entries Near dental

Cite this Entry

“Dental.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dental. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

dental

adjective
den·​tal
ˈdent-ᵊl
: of or relating to the teeth or dentistry
Etymology

Adjective

from Latin dentalis "relating to the teeth," from dent-, dens "tooth" — related to dandelion, indent, trident

Medical Definition

dental

adjective
den·​tal ˈdent-ᵊl How to pronounce dental (audio)
1
: relating to, specializing in, or used in dentistry
dental surgery
dental students
2
: relating to or used on the teeth
dental paste
dentally adverb

More from Merriam-Webster on dental

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