Incisors are the four teeth located in the front of the upper and lower jaws, situated between thecuspids. We have a total of eight incisors. Generally, incisors have one root, whilemolarsnormally have two or three roots.
The six teeth located at the front of the mouth in both the top (or maxillary) jaw and bottom (or mandibular) jaw that include the incisors and cuspids are collectively referred to as the anterior teeth. Teeth located at the back of the jaw are referred to as posterior teeth.
Westend61 / Getty Images
Types of Incisors
There are two types of incisors:
Lateral incisors are found next to the central incisors. Permanent lateral incisors appear around the age of 7 or 8.
How Many Teeth Do Adults Have?
Function of the Incisors
The incisors primary function is to cut and tear into food (the name comes from the Latin wordincideremeaning “to cut”), although the aesthetic appearance of these anterior teeth is highly scrutinized as they are visible during smiling, eating and talking.
Dental Issues With Incisors
In a normal bite or occlusion, each maxillary incisor will slightly overlap the corresponding mandibular incisor beneath. However, crooked teeth or a misaligned jaw can impact the bite. This common condition is calledmalocclusion, which can result in an underbite, overbite, edge to edge bite, or crossbite.
Crooked incisors and malocclusion can be addressed through orthodontics in severe cases, or with veneers in less severe cases. Orthodontics in the form of dentalbracesis commonly used to correct the malocclusion.
Caring for Your Incisors
As with all teeth, good dental hygiene is important to maintaining healthy incisors. Because they are located in the front of the jaw and most visible, they also have cosmetic and lifestyle importance.
Routinevisits to the dentistfor professional cleaning and polishing will keep your incisors in good shape throughout your life.
4 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Mouthy Healthy, American Dental Association.Eruption Charts.Lombardo G, Vena F, Negri P, et al.Worldwide prevalence of malocclusion in the different stages of dentition: A systematic review and meta-analysis.European Journal of Paediatric Dentistry. 2020 Feb;21(2):115-123. doi:10.23804/ejpd.2020.21.02.05Nehme M, Parkinson CR, Zero DT, Hara AT.Randomised study of the effects of fluoride and time on in situ remineralisation of acid-softened enamel.Clin Oral Invest. 2019 Apr;23(12):4455-4463. doi:10.1007/s00784-019-02900-5Mazhari F, Boskabady M, Moeintaghavi A, Habibi A.The effect of toothbrushing and flossing sequence on interdental plaque reduction and fluoride retention: A randomized controlled clinical trial.J Periodontol. 2018 May;89(7):824-832. doi:10.1002/JPER.17-0149
4 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Mouthy Healthy, American Dental Association.Eruption Charts.Lombardo G, Vena F, Negri P, et al.Worldwide prevalence of malocclusion in the different stages of dentition: A systematic review and meta-analysis.European Journal of Paediatric Dentistry. 2020 Feb;21(2):115-123. doi:10.23804/ejpd.2020.21.02.05Nehme M, Parkinson CR, Zero DT, Hara AT.Randomised study of the effects of fluoride and time on in situ remineralisation of acid-softened enamel.Clin Oral Invest. 2019 Apr;23(12):4455-4463. doi:10.1007/s00784-019-02900-5Mazhari F, Boskabady M, Moeintaghavi A, Habibi A.The effect of toothbrushing and flossing sequence on interdental plaque reduction and fluoride retention: A randomized controlled clinical trial.J Periodontol. 2018 May;89(7):824-832. doi:10.1002/JPER.17-0149
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Mouthy Healthy, American Dental Association.Eruption Charts.Lombardo G, Vena F, Negri P, et al.Worldwide prevalence of malocclusion in the different stages of dentition: A systematic review and meta-analysis.European Journal of Paediatric Dentistry. 2020 Feb;21(2):115-123. doi:10.23804/ejpd.2020.21.02.05Nehme M, Parkinson CR, Zero DT, Hara AT.Randomised study of the effects of fluoride and time on in situ remineralisation of acid-softened enamel.Clin Oral Invest. 2019 Apr;23(12):4455-4463. doi:10.1007/s00784-019-02900-5Mazhari F, Boskabady M, Moeintaghavi A, Habibi A.The effect of toothbrushing and flossing sequence on interdental plaque reduction and fluoride retention: A randomized controlled clinical trial.J Periodontol. 2018 May;89(7):824-832. doi:10.1002/JPER.17-0149
Mouthy Healthy, American Dental Association.Eruption Charts.
Lombardo G, Vena F, Negri P, et al.Worldwide prevalence of malocclusion in the different stages of dentition: A systematic review and meta-analysis.European Journal of Paediatric Dentistry. 2020 Feb;21(2):115-123. doi:10.23804/ejpd.2020.21.02.05
Nehme M, Parkinson CR, Zero DT, Hara AT.Randomised study of the effects of fluoride and time on in situ remineralisation of acid-softened enamel.Clin Oral Invest. 2019 Apr;23(12):4455-4463. doi:10.1007/s00784-019-02900-5
Mazhari F, Boskabady M, Moeintaghavi A, Habibi A.The effect of toothbrushing and flossing sequence on interdental plaque reduction and fluoride retention: A randomized controlled clinical trial.J Periodontol. 2018 May;89(7):824-832. doi:10.1002/JPER.17-0149
Meet Our Medical Expert Board
Share Feedback
Was this page helpful?Thanks for your feedback!What is your feedback?OtherHelpfulReport an ErrorSubmit
Was this page helpful?
Thanks for your feedback!
What is your feedback?OtherHelpfulReport an ErrorSubmit
What is your feedback?
