jaw

The part of the mouth that opens and closes is called the jaw. This is what a lower jaw bone looks like:

Jay Leno is a late-night talk show host in the United States who is well known for having a large jaw. It’s one of his most prominent features:

Jay Leno

When a large-toothed animal opens its mouth wide enough to show its teeth and the enormous power of the mouth, we often use the word "jaws."

• The alligator opened its jaws before it clamped down on an unsuspecting animal.
• The jaws of a rhinocerous can crush just about anything that goes between them.

In the 1970s, a popular movie about a great white shark scared a lot of people from going into the water. The title of the movie was Jaws.

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October 10, 2013