noun / adjective
bicuspid
bye-KUS-pid/baɪkˈʌspʌd/
Having two projecting points or flaps.
The bicuspid has two distinct points on its crown beside the canine.
Etymology
“Two” plus “point” describes the tooth’s two cusps. The noun is shortened from “bicuspid molar,” so the tooth is named for its shape rather than its position.
In context
we will usually have the first bicuspid or first premolar teeth extracted and then pull the front six teeth back into that extraction space
More examples
- A bicuspid tooth has two main pointed projections.
- The scan reveals a bicuspid aortic valve.
- She needs a filling in her upper bicuspid.
Forms
bicuspid · bicuspids
Similar words
- premolar
- Specifically names the tooth rather than any two-pointed structure.
- molar
- A grinding tooth farther back in the mouth.