Do you know the names of the different parts of your mouth? Sure, you say. There’s the teeth, the tongue…….Yes, those are the parts of your mouth, but we’re thinking of some parts you may never heard of. We check the health of these different mouth parts and surfaces each time you have a dental exam and cleaning. We hope you find learning about these areas of your mouth as interesting as we do. Check out the terms below and listen for them the next time we’re checking out your mouth.
LINGUAL This area is comprised of the inside surfaces of your teeth – the parts that are easiest to touch with your tongue. The lingual surfaces are on the lower teeth.
PALATAL This is the same inside surfaces as the lingual, but the palatal surfaces are on the upper teeth rather than the lower.
DISTAL This may sound like part of a flower, but it’s actually the side of your tooth that is located towards the back of the mouth.
MESIAL The mesial surface is the opposite of the distal in that it is the surface of the tooth toward the front of the mouth.
LABIAL These are the outer surfaces of the teeth that are against the lips.
CUSPS The raised sections of biting surfaces of your teeth – the points – are called cusps.
OCCLUSAL This is the chewing surface of a back tooth.
INCISAL This is the biting edge of a front tooth.
Other easy to spot mouth parts:
HARD PALATE This is the roof of your mouth. It’s toward the front and is hard because the tissue covers bone
SOFT PALATE The roof of your mouth toward the back, It doenst have bone under it and is the part that vibrates when you snore
UVULA The soft tissue the hangs down in the middle of you soft palate
VESTIBULE This is the trough between your lips and the bone that holds your teeth in place.
