Tooth Riddles: 30 Toothy Riddles with Answers for Kids on Riddlepedia
School & Science

Tooth Riddles: 30 Toothy Riddles with Answers for Kids

30 riddles · tap Hint or Answer to reveal

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Your teeth do a lot of work. They bite, tear and grind every meal, they help you say words clearly, and they give your smile its shape. They’re also covered in the hardest stuff in your whole body. Kids get two sets of teeth in their lives, so the ones you have right now are a big deal.

These 30 tooth riddles start with brushing, flossing and the tooth fairy, move on to the different kinds of teeth in the medium round, and finish with tricky ones about what’s inside a tooth and the wild teeth of animals. A few dentist jokes are mixed in too. They’re great for dental health month, a class on the human body, or a wiggly-tooth week at home.

Easy Tooth Riddles

We’re white, we live in your mouth, and we chomp your apples and carrots. You brush us every morning and night. What are we?

Hint
You show us off when you smile.
Answer
Your teeth

I have a long handle and a head full of bristles, but no hair to comb. I scrub your teeth clean. What am I?

Hint
You should get a new one every few months.
Answer
A toothbrush

I come out of a tube in a little minty squiggle, and I help keep your teeth strong and clean. What am I?

Hint
Squeeze just a pea-sized bit of me onto your brush.
Answer
Toothpaste

I count your teeth, check them for holes and make them sparkle. I’ll ask you to open wide. Who am I?

Hint
You visit me for a checkup about twice a year.
Answer
A dentist

Put your wiggly tooth under your pillow at night, and I might trade it for a coin. Who am I?

Hint
I have wings, and nobody has ever seen me at work.
Answer
The tooth fairy

I’m a thin string that slides between your teeth to clean where your brush can’t reach. What am I?

Hint
My name is also a dance move where you swing your arms.
Answer
Floss

I’m a small hole in a tooth, made when germs and sugar wear the tooth down. The dentist fills me in. What am I?

Hint
Eating lots of candy without brushing can give you one.
Answer
A cavity

Dentists say you should brush twice a day, for this long each time. How long?

Hint
It’s about as long as singing your favorite song once.
Answer
Two minutes

I’m the very first set of teeth you get. I start to fall out when you’re about six, to make room for bigger teeth. What am I called?

Hint
My name sounds like I belong to someone very small.
Answer
Baby teeth

What does a dentist call an X-ray of your smile?

Hint
Think of the little wooden sticks some people use after dinner.
Answer
Tooth pics

Medium Tooth Riddles

I’m the shiny white outer coat of your teeth, and I’m the hardest substance in your whole body, harder even than bone. What am I?

Hint
My name starts with the same sound as “enemy,” but I’m your teeth’s best friend.
Answer
Enamel

We’re the big, flat teeth at the back of your mouth. We grind and mash your food before you swallow it. What are we?

Hint
Elephants have giant ones of us.
Answer
Molars

We’re the flat, sharp teeth right at the front of your mouth. We bite into a sandwich and snip off a piece. What are we called?

Hint
Our name comes from a word meaning “to cut.”
Answer
Incisors

We’re the pointy teeth on each side of your front teeth. Our name comes from the Latin word for “dog.” What are we?

Hint
Dogs and wolves have long ones for tearing meat.
Answer
Canines

How many baby teeth does a child usually have?

Hint
Count all your fingers and all your toes.
Answer
20

These four teeth are the very last to grow in, usually when you’re a teenager or a grown-up. Some people never get them at all. What are they called?

Hint
They’re named after something people gain as they get older.
Answer
Wisdom teeth

I’m the soft pink skin that hugs the bottom of every tooth. If you don’t floss, I can get red and sore. What am I?

Hint
My name is also something you chew but shouldn’t swallow.
Answer
Your gums

I’m a sticky, invisible film of germs that builds up on your teeth every day. Brushing wipes me away. What am I?

Hint
My name is also a sign stuck on a wall to remember someone.
Answer
Plaque

I’m a mineral that dentists add to toothpaste, and sometimes to drinking water, because I make tooth enamel stronger. What am I?

Hint
My name starts with the same three letters as “flute.”
Answer
Fluoride

I’m made of little brackets and wires, and I slowly push crooked teeth into a straight line. What am I?

Hint
You might wear me for a year or two, then show off your new smile.
Answer
Braces

Tricky Tooth Riddles

How many teeth does a grown-up have, counting the wisdom teeth?

Hint
It’s 12 more than a child has.
Answer
32

The part of your tooth you can see, above the gum, has the same name as something a king or queen wears. What is it?

Hint
It’s usually made of gold and jewels.
Answer
The crown

I’m the layer just under the enamel. I’m yellowish and softer than enamel, and I make up most of the tooth. What am I?

Hint
My name starts like “dentist.”
Answer
Dentin

Deep in the middle of every tooth is a soft part with nerves and blood vessels. It’s what makes a tooth feel cold or hurt. What is it called?

Hint
It shares its name with the soft, juicy bits in orange juice.
Answer
The pulp

You get only two sets of teeth in your life. I lose teeth all the time, and new rows keep moving forward to replace them. I might go through thousands of teeth. What am I?

Hint
I’m a famous ocean hunter with fins.
Answer
A shark

I’m a whale of the icy Arctic with a long, spiral tusk, so people call me the unicorn of the sea. My tusk isn’t a horn at all: it’s a giant tooth that grows right through my lip. What am I?

Hint
My name starts with “nar.”
Answer
A narwhal. Its tusk can grow longer than a person is tall.

My front teeth are bright orange, and they’re strong enough to chew down trees. What am I?

Hint
I build dams in rivers.
Answer
A beaver. Its teeth are orange because the enamel has iron in it.

Rabbits, mice and beavers all gnaw on hard things all day long. Why don’t their front teeth get worn down to nothing?

Hint
Think about your fingernails.
Answer
They never stop growing. Gnawing keeps them at the right length.

The first US president, George Washington, had false teeth. They’re often said to be made of wood, but they weren’t. What are false teeth called?

Hint
His were really made of ivory, metal and real teeth.
Answer
Dentures

I’m a slow garden creature, and I have thousands of tiny teeth on a ribbon-like tongue. What am I?

Hint
I carry my house on my back.
Answer
A snail

Tooth Riddle Games for Kids

  • Brush along: set a two-minute timer and read riddles while everyone brushes (or pretends to, with a dry toothbrush in class). See how many you can answer before the timer rings.
  • Tooth map: after the medium round, give kids a paper mouth and have them color the incisors, canines and molars in different colors.
  • Tooth fairy notes: kids pick a favorite riddle and write it on a tiny note for the tooth fairy, with the answer on the back.
  • Animal teeth match: for the tricky round, show pictures of a shark, a beaver, a narwhal and a snail, and see if kids can match each to its tooth fact before reading the answer.

Want more body and science fun? Try our human body riddles, these skeleton riddles or our elephant riddles, where the tusks are teeth too.