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Glite Dictionary
periodontist

periodontist

3 7.6
A dentist who treats and prevents problems of the gums and bone around teeth
  • noun
  • /ˌpɪəriˈɒndɪst/
  • Specialized
: periodoncista
  • My periodontist recommended a deep cleaning to help with my gum issues.

Examples

  • You know what $32 gets you at a periodontist these days?

    Choke (2008)

  • I'm gonna recommend you see a periodontist.

    Synecdoche, New York (2008)

  • I am periodontist, she is oral surgeon.

    All Is Bright (2013)

  • And so, pleading an early morning engagement with my periodontist, I made my escape.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • Each time she ran across the phrase, she wondered how it made the Governor's brother, a periodontist, feel.

    Fiction book (1998)

  • After my visit, the periodontist explained how to care for my gums properly.

  • The periodontist diagnosed my gum disease and suggested an effective treatment plan.

Surface Forms

periodontist singular
periodontists plural

Morphology

periodontist = periodontics (opaque) = peri + odont + ist

The medical combining forms 'peri-' and 'odont-' are not recognizable to an average B1 learner (though '-ist' signals a specialist), so the meaning cannot be reliably derived from the parts.

Etymology

The word periodontist breaks into parts: peri- meaning 'around', odont meaning 'tooth', and -ist meaning a specialist. So a periodontist is a specialist who treats the gums and the bone that hold a tooth, in other words the parts 'around' the tooth.