The structure of our set of teeth
Our teeth are made of a hard, bone-like substance. They are held by small sockets in our upper and lower jawbones called dental . Strong fibers anchor them in place. The upper and lower sets of teeth form two arches. When you close your mouth and bite, these two arches typically fit together with a slight overlap.
A full set of adult teeth includes 16 upper teeth and 16 lower teeth at the most. Each row has:
- Four incisors in the middle
- Two canine teeth next to the incisors; one to the left and one to the right
- Ten molars (back teeth); five on each side