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n.1. a glassy substance, usually opaque, applied by fusion to the surface of metal, pottery, etc., as an ornament or for protection.2. enamelware.3. any of various varnishes, paints, coatings, etc., drying to a hard, glossy finish.4. any enamellike surface with a bright luster.5. an artistic work executed in enamel.6. Dentistry. the hard, glossy, calcareous covering of the crown of a tooth, containing only a slight amount of organic substance. See diag. under tooth.v.t.7. to inlay or overlay with enamel.8. to form an enamellike surface upon: to enamel cardboard.9. to decorate as with enamel; variegate with colors.[1275-1325; ME enamelen < AF enameler, enamailler, equiv. to en- EN-1 + -amaler, deriv. of asmal, esmal enamel, OF esmail (-al taken as the suffix -ail) < Old Low Franconian *smalt- something melted, c. G Schmalz fat; akin to SMELT1; cf. SMALTO]
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▪ toothin anatomy, the hardest tissue of the body, covering part or all of the crown of the tooth in mammals. Enamel, when mature, consists predominantly of apatite crystals containing calcium and phosphate. Enamel is not living and contains no nerves. The thickness and density of enamel vary over the surface of the tooth; it is hardest at the biting edges, or cusps. The enamel of primary teeth is less hard than and only half as thick as that of permanent teeth. Normal enamel may vary in colour from yellow to gray. The surface enamel is harder and less soluble and contains more fluoride than the underlying enamel and is very resistant to caries (q.v.; tooth decay). Two major malformations of enamel may occur: (1) hypoplasia, in which the amount of matrix is insufficient, so that there is a lack of enamel; this may result from infection or malnutrition during development or, in rare instances, from genetic anomaly; (2) hypocalcification, in which there is insufficient calcium and a soft enamel is produced; this may result, for example, from excess fluorine in the diet. See also cementum; dentine.* * *
Universalium. 2010.
