wisdom tooth

wisdom tooth

noun

the back tooth on each side of each jaw in human beings; any of the four third molars appearing usually between the ages of 17 and 25

Etymology: calque of ModL dentes sapientiae, based on Gr sōphronistēres < sōphronein, to be of sound mind: from their late appearance

cut one's wisdom teeth

to arrive at the age of discretion

Converse of object

extract: Five couples, selected from 180 volunteers across the UK, will have their wisdom teeth extracted at Guy's Hospital in London.

Adjective modifier

low: Had left upper and lower jaw wisdom teeth extracted and molar which had previous ' expensive ' root canal work.

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