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Appliance: Anything your orthodontist attaches to your teeth which moves your teeth or changes the shape of your jaw.

Archwire: The metal wire that acts as a track to guide your teeth along as they move. It is periodically changes throughout treatment as your teeth move to their new positions.

Band: A metal ring that is cemented to your tooth, going completely around it. Bands provide a way to attach brackets to your teeth.

Bond: The seal created by orthodontic cement that holds your appliances in place.

Bond-up: The process of attaching brackets to your teeth using special cement.

Bracket: A metal or ceramic part cemented to your tooth that holds the archwire in place.

Cephalometric X-ray: An X-ray of your head which shows the relative positions and growth of the face, jaws and teeth.

Coilspring: A spring that fits between brackets and over the archwire to open space between your teeth.

Debonding: The process of removing cemented braces from your teeth.

Elastic (Rubber band): A small rubber band that is hooked between different points on your brace to provide pressure to move your teeth to their new position.

Impressions: The process of making a model of your teeth by biting into a soft material that hardens into a mould of your teeth.

Panoramic X-Ray: An X-ray that rotates around your head to take an image of your teeth and jaws.