People often confuse the words teeth and tooth and interchange them for each other at certain places. Surprisingly, the terms do not only differ in terms of count of the teeth, but also when it comes to their usage. Of course, the clear difference is that ‘tooth’ is used as a singular term and ‘teeth’ is its plural form. What are the actual differences, then? Let’s go through them in this article.
Definitions
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‘Teeth’ is tooth’s plural form. This term is usually used in its collective form. For example, you should brush your teeth every day. In this case, you talk about the whole set of teeth and not just one tooth.
Tooth, on the other hand, is the singular form of teeth. For example, you may need a filling in a decayed tooth, and not in all the teeth.
A tooth is a whitish structure, small in size, in an invertebrate’s mouth. One uses his teeth for chewing food. Teeth are set in a person’s jaw.
Teeth vs Tooth
The difference between a tooth and teeth is in their count, although, there are many more dissimilarities between the two. Where a tooth is a small-sized, white-coloured, calcified structure in the mouth of invertebrates, teeth are a set of these small whitish structures in the jaw of a person. Teeth are useful for chewing food and for biting.
Being the hardest things in a human body, the teeth not only help you chew your food, but in delivering a speech as well. Every normal person has a total of 32 teeth, which comprise:
- 8 incisors (the four teeth in the middle in upper and lower jaws),
- 4 canines (pointed teeth in front of incisors),
- 8 premolars (those between canines and molars),
- 8 molars (the flat ones in the back of your mouth), and
- 4 wisdom teeth (which grow at the age of 18 years or over).
Consider a single tooth, and the different parts of a tooth include:
- Crown, that is, the topmost, visible part of your tooth.
- Root, that is, the part fixed in bone which holds the tooth firm.
- Enamel, that is, the tooth’s outmost layer.
- Dentin, that is, the tooth’s layer underneath the enamel.
- Pulp, that is, the soft tissue amid the teeth.
- Gumline, that is, the meeting point of tooth and gums.
Comparison Chart
| Teeth | Tooth |
| “Teeth” is a collective form of tooth. | Tooth is the small, calcified structure in the human mouth. |
| A set of teeth includes incisors, canines, premolars, molars, and wisdom teeth. | While a tooth’s position may differ in invertebrates, its different parts comprise crown, root, enamel, gumline, dentin, pulp, root canal, bone, and nerves. |
| These are 32 in number. | When one of all teeth is considered, it is called a tooth. |
| Example – Look after your teeth properly. | Example – You should get this tooth removed; it is decayed. |