ESL Podcast 503 - Seeing a Dentist
check-up - an exam where a dentist or doctor considers one's health and looks for any problems
The last time I went in for a check-up, the doctor had my blood tested for cholesterol and glucose.
cleaning - the process of having a dental professional clean one's teeth with special tools
Our dentist says we should have a professional cleaning every six months.
wisdom tooth - one of four large teeth in the back of one's mouth that usually appear in one's late teens or early 20s
How old were you when you got your wisdom teeth?
root canal - a painful procedure where a dentist takes out a damaged part of a tooth that is below the skin
My mother says: If you don't brush your teeth, you might need a root canal in the future.
nerve - a small part of one's body that one cannot see, but that carries messages from another body part to one's brain, sending information about touch, pain, and temperature
Without nerves, we wouldn't know what anything feels like.
cavity - a small hole in a tooth, usually caused by sugary food
Most people can prevent cavities by brushing their teeth after eating.
molar - one of the large teeth without a pointed top in the back on one's mouth, used for chewing (not biting)
Young children get their molars after they get their front teeth.
filling - the small amount of metal placed in a cavity to cover the hole in one's tooth and protect it from further damage
The dentist told her she'd need to get two new fillings.
sensitivity - having a strong, often painful reaction to small changes in touch, pressure, or temperature
His skin has high sensitivity to sunlight, so he must wear a hat and clothing to cover his body when he goes outside.
gums - the pink skin covering the bottom of one's teeth
Her gums bleed whenever she brushes her teeth.
to recede - to move backward, pulling away from something else
They watched the waters recede before low tide.
root - the part of a tooth or plant that is below the surface and cannot be seen
When you re-plant the rose bush, make sure all the roots are covered with soil.
dental floss - a long piece of thin string that is held between one's fingers and moved between one's teeth to clean the area between them
The dentist wants his patients to use dental floss every night before going to bed.
dental hygienist - a person who works with a dentist and whose job is to clean patients' teeth and teach them how to clean their own teeth better
The dental hygienist will clean your teeth, but the dentist will look for any problem areas.
to brush - to clean one's teeth with a toothbrush; to move a small tool against one's teeth quickly to clean them, usually two to three times per day after eating.
How old should a child be before learning to brush his or her own teeth?
buildup - accumulation; the addition of a little bit of material over a long period of time
They haven't swept the floor in months, so there's a major buildup of dirt.
plaque - a thin layer of food and bacteria that covers one's teeth after eating and needs to be removed by cleaning regularly, or else it will damage one's teeth
Brush two to three times per day to remove plaque.
tartar - a hard, yellow layer on one's teeth, created when one does not remove plaque regularly
You can remove plaque with brushing, but only a dental professional can use special tools to remove tartar.
dentures - false teeth; fake teeth; a set of artificial teeth that one wears when one no longer has natural teeth, often because they had to be removed for health reasons
Her teeth had so many problems that the dentist decided to remove them all and give her a set of dentures.