ameloblast

noun

am·​e·​lo·​blast ˈa-mə-lō-ˌblast How to pronounce ameloblast (audio)
: one of a group of columnar epithelial cells that produce and deposit enamel on the surface of a developing vertebrate tooth

Word History

Etymology

amel "enamel" (Middle English aumayl, amall, amelle, borrowed from Anglo-French amail, asmal) + -o- + -blast — more at enamel entry 1

Note: The term ameloblast was apparently coined by the American dentist Greene Vardiman Black (1836–1915). It appears perhaps for the first time in his contribution to the "Microscopy and Histology" section of The Missouri Dental Journal, v. 10, no. 5 (May, 1878), p. 266. In the "Report on Committee on Histology and Microscopy" chaired by Black, published in the Transactions of the American Dental Association, "Eighteenth Annual Session …Commencing on the 6th of August, 1878" (Chicago, 1879), the word is treated as follows in a footnote (p. 69): "Ameloblast, from Amel, the Old Saxon word for enamel, and Blast, from the Greek blastos, a germ, is here used to denote the formative cells of the enamel corresponding with Osteoblast, Odontoblast, etc." His amel is not "Old Saxon," but Black is correct in seeing the origin of the word as ultimately Germanic.

First Known Use

1878, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of ameloblast was in 1878

Rhymes for ameloblast

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Browse Nearby Words

ameliorate
ameloblast
amelodic
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Cite this Entry

“Ameloblast.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ameloblast. Accessed 3 Nov. 2025.

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Medical Definition

ameloblast

noun
am·​e·​lo·​blast ˈam-ə-lō-ˌblast How to pronounce ameloblast (audio)
: any of a group of columnar epithelial cells that produce and deposit enamel on the surface of a developing vertebrate tooth
ameloblastic
ˌam-ə-lō-ˈblas-tik How to pronounce ameloblast (audio)
adjective
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