tooth
/tuθ/noun, verb
tooth is spelled T-O-O-T-H: 5 letters and one syllable. It appears 12 times per million words in written English, the 6,230th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, tooth means “A hard, calcareous structure present in the mouth of many vertebrate animals, generally used for biting and chewing food” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of tooth is teeth.
How many letters and syllables are in tooth?
| Letters | 5: T-O-O-T-H |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 12 times per million words; the 6,230th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is tooth?
Tooth appears 12 times per million words in written English, the 6,230th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce tooth?
- UK /tuːθ/
- UK /tʊθ/
- US /tuθ/
Tooth has one syllable (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-uk-tooth.ogg, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Back_ache-tooth.wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-tooth.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with tooth?
8 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as tooth from its last stressed vowel (/uθ/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of tooth
- teeth plural
- tooths present, singular, he/she/it
- toothing participle, present
- toothed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does tooth mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A hard, calcareous structure present in the mouth of many vertebrate animals, generally used for biting and chewing food.
tooth decay
- 2
A sharp projection on the blade of a saw or similar implement.
- 3
A projection on the edge of a gear that meshes with similar projections on adjacent gears, or on the circumference of a cog that engages with a chain.
- 4
The property of resisting slippage when knotted.
Jute has more tooth than polypropylene.
- 5
A projection or point in other parts of the body resembling the tooth of a vertebrate animal.
- 6
A pointed projection from the margin of a leaf.
- 7
The rough surface of some kinds of cel or other films that allows better adhesion of artwork.
- 8
Liking, fondness (compare toothsome).
I have a sweet tooth: I love sugary treats.
verb
- 1
To provide or furnish with teeth.
- 2
To indent; to jag.
to tooth a saw
- 3
To lock into each other, like gear wheels.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Tooth in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does tooth come from?
From Middle English toth, tothe, tooth, from Old English tōþ, from Proto-West Germanic *tanþ, from Proto-Germanic *tanþs, from Proto-Indo-European *h₃dónts (“tooth”). Doublet of dent, dens, tind, and tine. Related to tusk.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).