Dental floss holder

Claim 1

A dental floss holder adapted to receive a dental floss having at least two enlargements formed thereon and spaced one from another by a predetermined length, for holding said length of floss under tension, said holder comprising an elongated handle and a bifurcated head at one end of said handle, said bifurcated head having a pair of opposed spaced-apart resilient arms defining a gap between terminal ends thereof with said gap having a width greater than said predetermined length, each terminal end of said arms being provided with an outwardly extending flange and a floss receiving groove, the groove at one terminal end being aligned with the groove at the other terminal end and each said groove having a bottom defined by a rounded convex surface for frictionless engagement with floss positionable therein, the flange of each arm including a pair of opposed flange portions defining, as an extension of the groove, a guide opening therebetween for guiding floss and maintaining same positioned on said bottom surface at each said terminal end, said guide opening being smaller than said enlargements such that each said pair of flange portions at each said terminal end serve as respective pair of abutment shoulder portions to thereby define first anchoring means for releasably securing said floss such that said length thereof when bridging said gap is maintained under tension by outward resilient force exerted by said arms, whereby when a respective one of said two enlargements is anchored against a respective one of said pairs of abutment shoulder portions adjacent a respective one of said guide openings with the length of floss between said two enlargements extending through said guide openings and bridging said gap, said length of floss is securely held under tension by said arms.