prosthodontist

1 9.9

A dentist who replaces missing teeth with artificial ones

noun
/ˌprɒsθəˈdɒnɪst/

Specialized

: prostodoncista

For his jaw reconstruction, Mark consulted a prosthodontist who specializes in creating custom-fit dental prosthetics.

Examples

The prosthodontist recommended a set of dentures to help restore her smile after she lost her natural teeth.
Julian Osorio, a Boston prosthodontist who founded Atlantis Components in 1996, is the creator of a process that makes implants available to mainstream dentistry.

Academic text (2000)
After losing several teeth, Anna visited a prosthodontist to discuss options for dental implants.

Surface Forms

prosthodontist singular

prosthodontists plural

Morphology

prosthodontist = prosthodontics (opaque) = prostho + odont + ist

The base term is a technical formation from Greek combining forms ('prostho-' and 'odont-') that are not familiar productive morphemes to average learners.

Etymology

Prosthodontist comes from Greek parts prostho- meaning 'added' or 'in front of' and odont- meaning 'tooth', with -ist meaning 'specialist'. So a prosthodontist is a dental specialist who makes or fits artificial teeth (like a 'prosthetic' tooth) to replace missing ones.