Main Entry: es·tro·gen

Pronunciation: \ˈes-trə-jən\

Function: noun

Etymology: New Latin estrus + International Scientific Vocabulary -o- + -gen

Date: 1927

: any of various natural steroids (as estradiol) that are formed from androgen precursors, that are secreted chiefly by the ovaries, placenta, adipose tissue, and testes, and that stimulate the development of female secondary sex characteristics and promote the growth and maintenance of the female reproductive system; also : any of various synthetic or semisynthetic steroids (as ethinyl estradiol) that mimic the physiological effect of natural estrogens