dental

adjective den·tal \ ˈden-tᵊl \

Definition of dental

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

play \-ē\ adverb

See dental defined for English-language learners

See dental defined for kids

Recent Examples of dental from the Web

Those remains were sent to the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences, where they were confirmed by dental records to be those of Lavigne.

— carol robinson, AL.com, "Remains of missing Walker County man found; no foul play suspected," 25 Aug. 2017
The health department was also given the Silver Local Health Department of the Year and was cited for its Ready, Set, Smile dental initiative and the Engage DuPage program among others.

— michelle mullins, Naperville Sun, "Naperville News Digest," 11 Aug. 2017
The team carefully extracted the fossil from the rocky ground using small dental picks and brushes.

— michael price, Science | AAAS, "Ancient infant ape skull sheds light on the ancestor of all humans and living apes," 9 Aug. 2017
Nothing about the craft had really changed since the Gilded Age, until the arrival of electric erasers and their dental whir.

— cullen murphy, vanityfair.com, "When Fairfield County Was the Comic-Strip Capital of the World," 3 Aug. 2017
Savani filled the tray with dental alginate to create a negative mold of all the wounds.

— john wenz, Popular Mechanics, "How to Make Fake Blood & Guts for Halloween," 21 July 2017
Included are a restaurant, dental service, medical care, chaplain, a recreation center and organized outings.

— diane bell, sandiegouniontribune.com, "On and off the track: horses and hidden attractions at Del Mar," 19 July 2017
Stokes also objected to cutting dental and vision benefits from basic coverage, a controversial feature of the proposal.

— deborah yetter, The Courier-Journal, "Speakers call Bevin Medicaid overhaul 'cruel' and 'immoral' at public hearing," 17 July 2017
GC America was the first dental company in the U.S. to earn the award.

— mike nolan, Daily Southtown, "Dental products firm expands facility in Alsip," 10 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'dental.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of dental

Latin dentalis, from dent-, dens

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1594

See Words from the same year

dental

noun

Definition of dental

:a dental consonant

Recent Examples of dental from the Web

Dental records may help identify a body found in an Aurora garage Friday as cleaners were preparing the property for new ownership.

— hannah leone, Aurora Beacon-News, "Dental records may help identify body found in Aurora garage," 21 Aug. 2017
The event is open to the community and will feature information about Marram's health and dental services in addition to free food, music, dancing and prizes.

— Post-Tribune, "Community news," 17 Aug. 2017
Dental records confirmed that the bones were those of Cox.

— domingo ramirez jr., star-telegram, "Suspect in 1997 UNT student homicide faces death penalty in Oklahoma slaying," 15 Aug. 2017
The portion of children receiving preventive dental care has been growing in the region, along with the number of dental therapists.

— lisa demer, Alaska Dispatch News, "Study finds that rural Alaska dental aides, once challenged by dentists, make a difference in oral health," 15 Aug. 2017
A Raleigh dental practice called Night & Day Dental is opening its first Charlotte location in the southwest part of the city.

— katherine peralta, charlotteobserver, "Raleigh dental practice to open first Charlotte office Aug. 7," 2 Aug. 2017
A new captorhinid reptile from the Lower Permian of Oklahoma showing remarkable dental and mandibular convergence with microsaurian tetrapods.

— darren naish, Scientific American Blog Network, "The Microsaurs of Yore," 7 July 2017
Dental records were used to identify Leclair, who was from Albion, Pennsylvania.

— joe mandak, The Seattle Times, "Police: Wife’s body ID’d; shot in head, strapped with anchor," 5 July 2017
But sugar consumption was only associated with a greater risk of having severe early childhood dental caries when children who consumed the highest amount were compared with children who consumed the least.

— Fox News, "Prolonged breast-feeding ups risk of severe dental cavities," 3 July 2017

First Known Use of dental

circa 1727

DENTAL Defined for English Language Learners

dental

adjective

Definition of dental for English Language Learners

: of or relating to teeth or to the work dentists do

DENTAL Defined for Kids

dental

adjective den·tal \ ˈden-tᵊl \

Definition of dental for Students

:relating to the teeth or dentistry

Medical Dictionary

dental

adjective den·tal \ ˈdent-ᵊl \

medical Definition of dental

1 :relating to, specializing in, or used in dentistry

dental surgery

dental students

2 :relating to or used on the teeth

dental paste

—

dentally

play \-ē\ adverb

Learn More about dental

See words that rhyme with dental Spanish Central: Translation of dental Nglish: Translation of dental for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of dental for Arabic speakers

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up dental? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show

dental

Definition of dental

dentally

People Are Reading

Recent Examples of dental from the Web

Origin and Etymology of dental

dental

Definition of dental

Recent Examples of dental from the Web

First Known Use of dental

Phrases Related to DENTAL

Related Phrases

DENTAL Defined for English Language Learners

dental

Definition of dental for English Language Learners

DENTAL Defined for Kids

dental

Definition of dental for Students

Medical Dictionary

dental

medical Definition of dental

dentally

Learn More about dental

Seen and Heard

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Words at Play

Ask the Editors

Word Games

The Synonyms 'Discover' and 'Invent'

Trending: NY Times: Trump's Call Ignites 'Imbroglio'

The Exceptions Quiz III

17 English Words that Come From Japanese

Words of the Year: 1066