I fell foul on literal translation

Question

I repeatedly fall foul over “docteur” vs “médecin(e)”, and became even more confused with the phrase “why do you want to see the doctor” when the call was made to see the dentist. So I’m thinking, should it be “want to see the doctor Bernard”. My understanding is “docteur” is the title, and “médicin(e)” is the profession, and in this case “le dentiste”. And then I’m tripped up by “teeth cleaning” when in practice you would probably say “a descale” but that didn’t come to mind at the time !

Céline Pickard · Accepted Answer

Bonjour Anita,
You're right that "dentiste" is the profession. However, in France, in this context, you will definitely use the term "docteur" as it is how you address them (or refer to them when speaking to their secretary for example) as they are "un docteur en chirurgie dentaire". 
About "teeth cleaning", we agree with you and have amended this sentence to avoid any ambiguity.
I hope this is helpful.
Bonne journée !