Also found in: Dictionary, Thesaurus, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia. 2. dental plate; sometimes, by extension, incorrectly used to designate a complete denture. 3. a flat vessel, usually a petri dish, containing sterile solid medium for the culture of microorganisms. 4. to prepare a culture medium in a petri dish, or to inoculate such a medium with a bacterial culture. axial plate primitive streak. bite plate biteplate. cortical plate a layer of compact bone overlying the spongiosa of the alveolar process on the vestibular and oral aspects of the mandible and maxilla. deck plate roof plate. dental plate a plate of acrylic resin, metal, or other material that is fitted to the shape of the mouth, and serves for the support of artificial teeth. dorsal plate roof plate. end plate see end plate. epiphyseal plate the thin plate of cartilage between the epiphysis and the shaft of a long bone; it is the site of growth in length and is obliterated by epiphyseal closure. equatorial plate the collection of chromosomes at the equator of the spindle in mitosis. foot plate footplate. force plate force platform. medullary plate neural plate. muscle plate myotome (def. 2). neural plate a thickened band of ectoderm in the midbody region of the developing embryo, which develops into the neural tube; called also medullary plate. roof plate the unpaired dorsal longitudinal zone of the neural tube; called also dorsal plate and deck plate. tarsal plate tarsus (def. 2). ventral plate floor plate. In dentistry, a plate made of some suitable plastic material into which the patient bites in order to have a record of the relationship between the upper and lower jaws. The device may be reinforced with wire and used as a splint in the mouth or to treat temporomandibular joint difficulties. Synonym: interocclusal record; occlusal templateSee also: plate