Parts of Glasses: Names, What Each One Does and Which Parts Use Screws

The parts of glasses fall into two groups: the lenses and the frame. The frame holds the lenses in front of your eyes, rests on your nose and ears, and folds shut. It has about ten named parts: rims, bridge, nose pads, pad arms, end pieces, hinges, temples, temple tips and the small screws that hold several of them together.

This guide names every one of those parts of eyeglasses, says what each does and shows which parts of glasses use screws. That last point matters when something comes loose. A wobbly arm or a rattling lens is usually a screw problem, not a broken frame.

Knowing the names of the parts of glasses also helps when you talk to an optician, order a spare part or decide whether a fix takes two minutes at home or a trip to a professional. If you have ever searched for glasses parts names to describe a problem, you know how many words one part can have.

What are the parts of glasses?

Here is the full list of glasses components in one table, with the parts of glasses named the way an optician would. The third column shows where screws sit, and the last shows what you can usually handle yourself.

Part	What it does	Uses a screw?	Fix at home?
Lenses	Hold your prescription or sun tint	Held by the rims, or by small screws on rimless frames	No. See an optician
Rims (eye wires)	Circle and hold each lens	Often a tiny rim screw on metal frames	Tighten gently only
Bridge	Joins the two rims and sits on the nose	No	No. Bends need an optician
Nose pads	Cushion the nose and stop slipping	Some pads are fixed on with a small screw	Tighten the screw. Pads are not in our kits
Pad arms	Hold the pads and let them be adjusted	No	Ask an optician to adjust
End pieces	Join the front to the arms and hold half of each hinge	The hinge screw runs through them	Part of the hinge fix
Hinges	Let the arms fold in and open	Yes, the hinge screw	Yes
Temples (arms)	Run back to the ears and hold the glasses on	No, but the hinge screw joins them to the front	Loose: yes. Snapped: see below
Temple tips	Grip behind the ear	No	Ask an optician

 

The front of the frame

Glasses anatomy is easiest to learn from the front backward, so start with what sits around the lenses.

Lenses

Lenses are the glass or plastic you look through. They carry your prescription and any coatings. Every other part of the glasses exists to hold them in the right place in front of your eyes. A screwdriver does not fix lenses. A scratched or cracked lens needs an optician.

Rims, also called eye wires

The rims circle each lens. Plastic frames have a solid rim. Metal frames have a thin wire rim, and many close with a tiny rim screw at the corner so the lens stays locked in. Rimless frames have no rim at all. The lenses are mounted straight onto the bridge and end pieces, usually with small screws.

Bridge

The bridge joins the two rims and crosses the top of your nose. On many plastic frames the bridge rests directly on your nose and carries the weight. A bridge that is too wide lets the glasses slide down, and a bent bridge twists the whole frame. Bends are a job for an optician.

Nose pads and pad arms

Nose pads are the small cushions that rest on either side of your nose. Many metal frames have separate pads on thin metal pad arms, and the arms can be bent slightly to change the fit. Many plastic frames have the pads molded into the frame.

A cracked or worn pad needs a replacement pad. Our repair kits do not include nose pads, so ask your optician for new ones. A pad that has come loose because its screw backed out is a different story, and we cover it below.

End pieces

The end pieces sit at the outer corners of the front. They connect the front to the arms and hold one half of each hinge. When someone says the arm has come away from the front, this is the area they mean.

The arms: hinges, temples and temple tips

Hinges

The hinge is the joint that lets each arm fold in. A standard hinge has small interlocking knuckles held together by one tiny screw. A spring hinge adds a small spring so the arm can flex outward without stressing the frame. Our guide to how spring hinges work and why they come loose shows how to spot one.

Of all the eyeglass parts, the hinge screw is the one that loosens most often. If an arm feels wobbly or will not stay open, start there.

Temples

The temples are the long arms that run back to your ears. You may also hear them called arms or sides. A temple that has snapped is a different problem from a loose screw. Read our guide to fixing a broken glasses arm hinge in metal and plastic frames to see which breaks you can repair and which need an optician.

Temple tips

The temple tip, or earpiece, is the end of the arm that curves behind your ear. It adds grip and comfort. Tips wear over time. If your glasses slip off your ears, an optician can adjust or replace them.

Which parts of glasses use screws?

Screws sit in up to four places on a pair of glasses. Which ones yours has depends on the frame.

Hinge screws

Every folding frame has one on each hinge. Most plastic frames have only these. This is the screw behind most loose-arm problems.

Rim screws

On many metal frames, a tiny screw at the corner of each rim clamps the lens in. If it loosens, the lens can shift or rattle. Tighten it gently, a quarter turn at a time, and stop when it feels snug. Do not take it all the way out unless you have to, because the lens can drop free. If a lens will not stay put after tightening, see an optician.

Nose pad screws

On metal frames with screw-on pads, a small screw fastens each pad to its pad arm. Tighten it if the pad turns or wobbles.

Rimless mounting screws

On rimless frames, small screws or bolts hold each lens to the bridge and the end piece. Tighten these only a little. Too much force can crack a lens, so if you feel strong resistance, stop and see an optician.

What do you need to tighten these screws?

To tighten any of these, you need a screwdriver small enough for the screw head, and a spare screw in case one is missing or worn. A household screwdriver is too big for most glasses screws, and small spare screws are easy to lose. That is the gap SnapIt Screw fills with its eyeglass repair kits. Each kit is a double-ended screwdriver with plus and minus heads, plus 5 different sized, color-coded screws stored inside the screwdriver, so the screws stay with you. It comes as the Standard repair kit or the Premium repair kit.

The kit tightens and replaces screws only. It does not include nose pads, and it will not fix lenses, scratches, cracks or bent frames. For the steps, see our guide to tightening glasses at home without breaking them.

Which screw size do you need?

Glasses screws are tiny and come in several sizes, so a screw that looks right can still be wrong. For help matching a screw to your frame, see our guide to eyeglass screw sizes, types and replacement.

Once you know your size and color, the Screw Refill pack tops up the kit. It is a set of spare screws in sizes XS to XL, from 1.2mm to 1.7mm thread width, for when one goes missing or you need a different size.

Are the parts of sunglasses different?

The parts of sunglasses match the parts of eyewear you already know: lenses, rims, bridge, nose pads, hinges, temples and screws. The difference is in the lenses, which are tinted to cut glare and block UV light. Sunglasses screws loosen in the same places, so the hinge, rim and pad checks above apply to both. The same goes for reading glasses and spectacles. The parts of spectacles are the same list.

Which of the parts of glasses is causing the problem?

Use this to match what you see to the part and the next step:

What you notice	Part involved	What to do
An arm wobbles or will not stay open	Hinge screw	Tighten or replace the screw
A lens rattles or shifts	Rim screw	Tighten gently. If it will not hold, see an optician
A pad is crooked or loose	Pad screw or pad arm	Tighten the screw. An optician adjusts pad arms
An arm has snapped off	Temple or hinge	Check the broken hinge guide above, or see an optician
The frame is bent or twisted	Bridge or temples	See an optician
A lens is cracked or scratched	Lens	See an optician

 

How do you look after the parts of glasses?

• Lenses: rinse off dust first, then wipe with a clean microfiber cloth. Wiping dry grit can scratch the surface.
• Hinges and temples: put glasses on and take them off with both hands so the arms are not twisted.
• Screws: check the hinge screws every few weeks and tighten any that have started to loosen.
• Storage: keep glasses in a case. Heat from a car dashboard can warp plastic frames.

Cleaning supplies and a screwdriver usually live in different drawers, so neither is close when you need it. In the UK, SnapIt Screw's Ultimate Care Kit puts 2 repair kits, 1 lens cloth, 1 Case Companion and 1 lens spray in one set.

Parts of glasses FAQ

What are the parts on glasses called?

The parts of glasses fall into two main groups: the lenses and the frame. The frame includes the rims, bridge, nose pads, pad arms, end pieces, hinges, temples, temple tips and the screws that hold some of them together.

What are the sticks on the side of glasses called?

They are the temples, one of the parts of glasses that people also call arms or sides. They run back from the front of the frame to your ears.

What is the part of the glasses that goes over your ear?

The curved end of the temple that sits behind and over your ear is the temple tip, also called the earpiece.

What are the folding parts of glasses called?

The folding parts are the hinges. Each hinge sits where the temple meets the end piece and is held together by a tiny hinge screw. Spring hinges add a small spring so the arm can flex outward.

What are the replacement parts for eyeglass frames?

The parts that are most often replaced are screws, nose pads and temple tips. Screws are the easiest to swap at home, and SnapIt Screw's repair kit and Screw Refill pack supply them. Nose pads, temple tips and lenses usually need an optician, and our kits do not include them.

Fix the loose screw once you know the part

If the loose part is a hinge, rim or pad screw, SnapIt Screw's Standard repair kit or Premium repair kit has the screwdriver and screws to fix it. Keep it with your glasses so a loose screw never becomes a broken arm.