incisor

[in-sahy-zer] /ɪnˈsaɪ zər/
noun, Dentistry.
1.
any of the four anterior teeth in each jaw, used for cutting and gnawing.
Origin
1665-75; < Neo-Latin: literally, cutter, equivalent to Latin incīd(ere) to incise + -tor -tor, with -dt- > -s-
Examples from the web for incisors
  • The study compared incisors with incisors, and molars with molars.
  • Think of it as yet more evidence of a public firmly sinking its incisors into celebrity culture.
  • They have rodentlike incisors that never stop growing and are gnawed down on some of their tougher vegetarian fare.
  • Other incisors may touch on the inside corner at the top of the tooth.
  • The incisors are very small, the canines large, and the molars are tricuspid.
British Dictionary definitions for incisors

incisor

/ɪnˈsaɪzə/
noun
1.
a chisel-edged tooth at the front of the mouth. In man there are four in each jaw
Word Origin and History for incisors

incisor

n.

"cutting tooth," 1670s, from Medieval Latin incisor "a cutting tooth," literally "that which cuts into," from Latin incisus, past participle of incidere (see incision). Inscisours as the name of a cutting tool is attested from early 15c.

incisors in Medicine

incisor in·ci·sor (ĭn-sī'zər)
n.
Any of the four teeth adapted for cutting or gnawing, having a chisel-shaped crown and a single conical root and located in the front part of both jaws in both deciduous and permanent dentitions.

incisors in Science
incisor
  (ĭn-sī'zər)   
A sharp-edged tooth in mammals that is adapted for cutting or gnawing. The incisors are located in the front of the mouth between the canine teeth.
incisors in Culture
incisors [(in-seye-zuhrz)]

The sharp teeth at the front of the mouth (four on the top and four on the bottom) that are specialized for cutting. (Compare molars.)