Meaning & use
a sweet tooth
Last updated
Meanings
phrasesingular
A strong liking for sweet foods, such as candy, cake, or chocolate.
Grammar: Used with 'a' or 'have'. It is almost always singular: 'She has a sweet tooth.'
Patterns
- have a sweet tooth
- a sweet tooth for something
My sister has a sweet tooth, so she always orders dessert.
If you have a sweet tooth, you'll love this bakery.
He blames his sweet tooth for his weight gain.
phrasesingularhumorous
A person who loves sweet foods.
Grammar: This sense is less common and often used in a humorous way: 'He's a real sweet tooth.'
Patterns
- be a sweet tooth
She's a sweet tooth; she can't resist chocolate.
As a sweet tooth, he always has candy in his pocket.
Common combinations
- have a sweet tooth
- I have a sweet tooth, so I never skip dessert.
- a real sweet tooth
- He has a real sweet tooth and eats ice cream every night.
- a sweet tooth for chocolate
- She has a sweet tooth for dark chocolate.
Commonly confused: a sweet tooth or sweet tooth?
a sweet tooth vs sweet tooth
Not to be confused with a tooth that is sweet; it is an idiom for liking sweet food.
Practice
What does it mean if someone has a sweet tooth?
Choose one answer.
The idiom 'have a sweet tooth' means you enjoy sweet foods. The other options are literal misunderstandings.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “a sweet tooth”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.