uterus

noun

uter·us | \ ˈyü-tə-rəs

, ˈyü-trəs\

plural uteri\ ˈyü-tə-ˌrī

\ or uteruses

Definition of uterus

1 : a muscular organ of the female mammal for containing and usually for nourishing the young during development prior to birth

— called also womb

2 : a structure in some lower animals analogous to the uterus in which eggs or young develop

Examples of uterus in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

In one case, all four shark embryos were crammed into one uterus. — Jill Kiedaisch, Popular Mechanics, "Some Unborn Sharks Swim from Uterus to Uterus Inside Their Mom," 7 Jan. 2019 Toxoplasma courses through the body, targeting any combination of organs, including, in the case of females, the uterus, and for fetuses, the placenta. — Kim Steutermann Rogers, Smithsonian, "How the Tiniest of Parasites is Taking Down the Mightiest of Monk Seals," 9 July 2018 The embryos were grown in a petri dish in a process meant to mimic the embryo’s implantation in the uterus. — Amy Dockser Marcus, WSJ, "Gene-Editing Technique in Human Embryos Draws Skepticism," 8 Aug. 2018 Usually, multiple eggs are harvested - not all will mature into embryos -- and more than one embryo is implanted in the uterus to increase the chances of pregnancy. — Ginger Christ And Julie Washington, cleveland.com, "Tours of Ohio fertility clinics show procedures in place to safeguard eggs, embryos (photos, videos)," 25 Mar. 2018 My uterus is worse than anyone could have imagined. — Lena Dunham, Vogue, "In Her Own Words: Lena Dunham On Her Decision to Have A Hysterectomy at 31," 14 Feb. 2018 Eventually, a reproductive oncologist at Massachusetts General Hospital told her parents that their daughter's uterus and ovaries were only partially formed — and would likely soon become cancerous. — Asher Fogle, Good Housekeeping, "Falling in Between: Inside the Lives of Intersex Women," 21 Oct. 2016 But this year, doctors in Brazil reported the first uterus transplant from a deceased donor, with an incredible result: The recipient was able to give birth to a healthy baby girl. — Brian Resnick, Vox, "10 science stories in 2018 that made us go, “Whoa, that’s awesome”," 18 Dec. 2018 The dog was lying in a pool of its own blood, suffering from a prolapse which left the dog's uterus exposed. — Chris Sims, Indianapolis Star, "Reward offered after dog left chained and bleeding in bitter cold," 11 Jan. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'uterus.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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11 Feb 2019

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The first known use of uterus was in the 14th century

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More Definitions for uterus

uterus

noun

English Language Learners Definition of uterus

medical : the organ in women and some female animals in which babies develop before birth

See the full definition for uterus in the English Language Learners Dictionary

uterus

noun

uter·us | \ ˈyü-tə-rəs

plural uteruses or uteri\ ˈyü-tə-ˌrī \

Kids Definition of uterus

: the organ of a female mammal in which the young develop before birth

uterus

noun

uter·us | \ ˈyüt-ə-rəs

plural uteri\ -ˌrī

\ also uteruses

Medical Definition of uterus

: an organ in female mammals for containing and usually for nourishing the young during development prior to birth that consists of a greatly modified and enlarged section of an oviduct (as in rodents and marsupials) or of the two oviducts united (as in the higher primates including humans), that has thick walls consisting of an outer serous layer, a very thick middle layer of smooth muscle, and an inner mucous layer containing numerous glands, and that during pregnancy undergoes great increase in size and change in the condition of its walls

— called also womb