testosterone

noun

tes·​tos·​ter·​one te-ˈstä-stə-ˌrōn 

1

: a hormone that is a hydroxy steroid ketone C₁₉H₂₈O₂ produced especially by the testes or made synthetically and that is responsible for inducing and maintaining male secondary sex characters

2

: qualities (such as brawn and aggressiveness) usually associated with males : manliness

Examples of testosterone in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Sleep affects testosterone production — and testosterone is essential for sperm development. —Dr. Jamin Brahmbhatt, CNN Money, 22 Apr. 2026

McMahon attributes her ability to thrive among testosterone guzzlers to being an only child. —Zach Helfand, New Yorker, 20 Apr. 2026

In fact, the two are biologically linked, with overlapping pathologies in endothelial function, and signaling in testosterone and nitric oxide. —Denise Asafu-Adjei, STAT, 13 Apr. 2026

In women, low testosterone contributes to similar symptoms plus declining bone density, especially around menopause. —Allison Palmer, Miami Herald, 10 Apr. 2026

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from German Testosteron, from Latin testēs testes + German -o- -o- + -steron -sterone

Note: The name was introduced by the Hungarian pharmacologists Karoly Gyula David (1905-45) and János Freud (1901-48), the Dutch endocrinologist Elisabeth Dingemanse (1886-1952), and the German-born Dutch physician and pharmacologist Ernst Laqueur (1880-1947) (all affiliated with the Pharmaco-Therapeutic Laboratory of the University of Amsterdam) in "Über krystallinisches männliches Hormon aus Hoden (Testosteron), wirksamer als aus Harn oder aus Cholesterin bereitetes Androsteron," Zeitschrift für physiologische Chemie, Band 233 (1935), pp. 281-83.

First Known Use

1935, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for testosterone

• aldosterone
• anticyclone
• progesterone
• acetone
• anglophone
• baritone
• bourguignon
• buspirone
• chaperon
• chaperone
• cobblestone
• collarbone

Kids Definition

testosterone

noun

tes·​tos·​ter·​one te-ˈstäs-tə-ˌrōn 

: a male hormone produced by the testes that causes the development of the male reproductive system and secondary sex characteristics

Medical Definition

testosterone

noun

tes·​tos·​ter·​one te-ˈstäs-tə-ˌrōn 

: a male hormone that is a crystalline hydroxy steroid ketone C₁₉H₂₈O₂ produced primarily by the testes or made synthetically and that is the main androgen responsible for inducing and maintaining male secondary sex characteristics see androgel, axiron