Skip to main content
← Back to Dental Laboratories

Dental Laboratories Glossary

105 terms total — 24 showing — Last updated 15 Sep 2026

Implant Abutment Torque

Advanced Technical IVT

The rotational force, measured in Newton-centimetres, applied when tightening an abutment screw onto a dental implant to achieve proper seating and prevent loosening.

Showing 49–72 of 105

investment casting

Intermediate Technical IVT

The lost-wax process by which a wax dental pattern is encased in a heat-resistant mould material and subsequently burned...

Technical Term Full entry →

IPS

Intermediate Technical IVT

Abbreviation for Ivoclar Vivadent Press System, a brand name used to refer to a range of pressed ceramic dental material...

Abbreviation Full entry →

laboratory prescription

Basic Formal IVT

A written or digital instruction document issued by a dentist to a dental laboratory detailing the specifications for a...

Document Type Full entry →

Laboratory Remount Cast

Advanced Technical IVT

A cast fabricated from a completed denture to facilitate the re-articulation and occlusal correction of the prosthesis a...

Technical Term Full entry →

layering technique

Intermediate Technical IVT

A ceramic build-up method in which successive layers of porcelain or composite are applied, fired, and contoured to achi...

Technical Term Full entry →

mamelon

Advanced Technical IVT

One of three rounded lobes of enamel on the incisal edge of a newly erupted permanent incisor, reproduced by dental tech...

Technical Term Full entry →

margin

Basic Technical IVT

The boundary or edge of a dental preparation or restoration where it meets the natural tooth structure, determining the...

Technical Term Full entry →

milling bur

Intermediate Technical IVT

A precision rotary cutting tool used in CAD/CAM milling machines to shape dental restorations from ceramic, composite, o...

Technical Term Full entry →

monolithic restoration

Advanced Technical IVT

A dental prosthesis fabricated entirely from a single material without a separate veneering layer, commonly used with hi...

Technical Term Full entry →

mould guide

Basic Semi-formal IVT

A reference chart supplied by an artificial tooth manufacturer showing the shape, size, and designation codes of availab...

Document Type Full entry →

mucocompressive impression

Advanced Technical IVT

A denture impression technique that records the soft tissue in a displaced, load-bearing state, capturing the ridge unde...

Technical Term Full entry →

mucostatic impression

Advanced Technical IVT

A denture impression technique that records the oral soft tissues in their resting, undisplaced state, using a low-visco...

Technical Term Full entry →

neutral zone

Advanced Technical IVT

The potential space in the oral cavity where the inward forces of the cheeks and lips are balanced by the outward forces...

Technical Term Full entry →

occlusal

Intermediate Technical IVT

Relating to the biting or chewing surface of posterior teeth, or to the relationship between upper and lower teeth when...

Technical Term Full entry →

occlusal equilibration

Advanced Technical IVT

The selective adjustment of occlusal surfaces to produce simultaneous, even contact across all teeth in centric and excu...

Technical Term Full entry →

Occlusal Reduction

Intermediate Technical IVT

The measured removal of tooth structure on the biting surface to create adequate space for a restorative material of suf...

Technical Term Full entry →

Occlusal Rim

Intermediate Technical IVT

A wax or resin block mounted on a baseplate, used to record jaw relationships and establish tooth position guides before...

Technical Term Full entry →

occlusal scheme

Advanced Technical IVT

The planned pattern of tooth contacts in both centric and excursive jaw movements that guides the design of a prosthetic...

Technical Term Full entry →

occlusal splint

Basic Semi-formal IVT

A removable hard or soft acrylic appliance fitted over the teeth to protect against bruxism, stabilise the temporomandib...

Technical Term Full entry →

occlusal vertical dimension

Advanced Technical IVT

The measured distance between two designated anatomical points when the teeth or occlusal rims are in maximum intercuspa...

Technical Term Full entry →

opaque layer

Advanced Technical IVT

The initial ceramic layer fired directly onto a metal or zirconia coping to mask its underlying colour and create a foun...

Technical Term Full entry →

ovate pontic

Advanced Technical IVT

A prosthetic tooth replacement design with an egg-shaped tissue surface that sits within a prepared concavity in the sof...

Technical Term Full entry →

OVD

Intermediate Technical IVT

Abbreviation for Occlusal Vertical Dimension; the measured jaw-closed face height used as a key reference in prosthetic...

Abbreviation Full entry →

palatal plate

Intermediate Technical IVT

A broad, flat major connector of a maxillary removable partial denture that covers a substantial portion of the hard pal...

Technical Term Full entry →
Showing 49–72 of 105

Editors from these organisations have used our services since 1998

Reuters BBC Oxford University Press Penguin Random House Springer Microsoft Suncor Energy United Nations Fisher Investments IBM The Home Depot KODAK CHEVRON