Sometimes dentist will use terms that we may not know or understand when they are talking about one or more of our teeth. There are several terms that that are used, that help to define locations on and around the teeth. These terms are used often to refer to specific areas of the mouth when describing conditions there. Here is a list of some of those terms.

*Posterior: Towards the back of the mouth.
*Anterior: Towards the front of the mouth
*Mesial: Towards the midline of the mouth.
*Distal:  Away from the midline of the mouth
*Buccal: Any area on the cheek side of the teeth
*Lingual: Any area on the tongue side of the teeth
*Facial: Any area on the cheek or lip side of the teeth. Is often used interchangeably with buccal but mostly in the anterior portion of the mouth.
*Palatal: Any area on the tongue side of the maxillary teeth
*Occlusal: Any area on the chewing surfaces of back teeth.
*Incisal: Any area on the biting surfaces of the front teeth.