Blog · Tongue-tie · August 19, 2026 · 6 min

Tongue-tie in adults: 6 signs you may have it

When you hear the phrase “tongue-tie,” you probably picture a newborn struggling to latch. But tongue-tie (ankyloglossia) is not just a baby problem. Plenty of adults walk around with a tight lingual frenulum — the band of tissue that anchors the underside of the tongue to the floor of the mouth — and never had it identified. They adapt. They work around it. They assume their tongue is normal because it's the only tongue they've ever had.

By Gina Sabbak, RDH — Myofunctional Therapist · Last reviewed: 2026-08-19

What tongue-tie actually is

The lingual frenulum is supposed to be a thin, stretchy piece of tissue. In a tongue-tie, the frenulum is unusually short, thick, or tight — or it attaches too close to the tip of the tongue. The result: the tongue can't move through its full range of motion. The restriction is mechanical, not a habit.

Modern peer-reviewed work, including a 2019 paper in Clinical Anatomy by Mills and colleagues, has refined our understanding: there are different types of tongue-tie, and the restriction can affect the floor of the mouth and the deeper fascial structures as well as the visible band of tissue.

Six signs you may have it as an adult

None of these are diagnostic on their own. But if several of them sound familiar, it's worth a myofunctional evaluation.

1. You can't touch the roof of your mouth with your tongue

With your mouth open, lift the tip of your tongue to the spot right behind your upper front teeth. If you can't reach it, or if the tip of your tongue notches into a heart shape when you try, that's a strong signal. Many adults with tongue-tie can reach the roof with their mouth closed but not open, because the closed-mouth position is more forgiving.

2. Trouble with certain sounds

Sounds that require the tongue to lift high and forward — “t,” “d,” “l,” “n,” “r,” “s,” “z” — can be harder to produce cleanly when tongue mobility is limited. Some adults have worked around this for so long they don't notice, but speech therapists often spot it.

3. The tongue rests low in your mouth

A tongue with full mobility rests gently against the roof of the mouth, lips closed, teeth lightly apart. If your tongue tends to sit on the floor of your mouth, between or behind your bottom teeth, the muscle is doing the only thing it can do — it can't get up to the roof even at rest.

4. A forward or messy swallow

A typical swallow presses the tongue up against the roof of the mouth. A tongue thrust swallow pushes forward against or between the teeth. If food feels hard to manage, if you've ever choked on a piece that just wouldn't go down, or if you see your tongue push forward when you swallow, the mechanism is off.

5. Crowded lower front teeth, or a history of orthodontic relapse

The resting posture of the tongue is one of the forces that shape the dental arch. If the tongue rests low because it can't get up to the roof, the upper arch doesn't get the gentle outward pressure it needs. Many adults with tongue-tie had braces as a teen, only to see the teeth start shifting again years later.

6. Snoring, mouth breathing, or jaw tension

None of these are caused by tongue-tie alone, but they're often part of the same picture. A tongue that can't rest up means the mouth tends to fall open at night, which means the jaw drops, the airway narrows, and the muscles of the floor of the mouth and the front of the neck have to work harder than they should.^[3]

What to do if several of these sound familiar

A myofunctional evaluation is the right next step. It's a 60-minute visit where we look at the structure (the frenulum, the floor of the mouth, the tongue itself) and the function (how the tongue moves, where it rests, how you swallow, how you breathe). We'll talk through what we find and whether a release procedure (a frenectomy, done by an ENT, dentist, or oral surgeon) is part of the picture — and if so, what pre- and post-therapy looks like.

A release on its own, without the surrounding therapy, often isn't enough. The tongue needs to learn the new range of motion. The swallow needs to be retrained. That's what myofunctional therapy is for.^[4]

If you want to start there

Call us at (502) 901-8089 or request an evaluation online. We'll start with the conversation.

This post is educational and is not medical advice. Tongue-tie assessment requires a hands-on evaluation by a qualified provider. If you suspect a problem, please talk to your own healthcare provider. Read more about tongue-tie here.