What is the name of the joint that attaches a tooth to its socket?

• A. Gomphosis
• B. Suture
• C. Syndesmosis
• D. Synostosis

Answer: (A)

Gomphosis is the joint that attaches a tooth to its socket. It’s a specialized fibrous joint where the tooth’s root fits into the alveolar socket and is anchored by the periodontal ligament. This peg-in-socket arrangement keeps the tooth firmly in place while allowing only tiny, controlled movement to absorb bite forces, classifying it as immovable overall.

Other fibrous joint types don’t fit this situation. A suture connects skull bones and is also fibrous, but it links bones in the skull rather than a tooth in a socket. A syndesmosis is a joint where bones are bound by ligaments or an interosseous membrane (like between the radius and ulna), not a tooth-in-socket attachment. A synostosis is when a joint becomes a complete bony fusion with no joint space at all, which isn’t how teeth are held in place.