uterus

noun

uter·​us ˈyü-tə-rəs 

ˈyü-trəs

plural uteri ˈyü-tə-ˌrī  or uteruses

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

Genetics plays a role in your risk for endometriosis—a condition in which tissue similar to that of the uterine lining grows outside the uterus, causing pain and heavy periods. —Laura Young, Verywell Health, 24 Apr. 2025

Pelvic floor muscles support the function of your bladder, bowel and the uterus, and research shows a link between women with urinary incontinence and pelvic floor muscle dysfunction and poor posture. —Danielle Zickl, SELF, 24 Apr. 2025

What’s so fun about unpacking all of this [is] to actually know that, for example, the Greeks thought that women shouldn’t vote or be allowed to have political power because of their uteruses, which were thought to be a site of unruly power. —Mara Santilli, Flow Space, 24 Apr. 2025

Uterine cancer occurs when cells in the uterus (an organ in the pelvis of people assigned female at birth) mutate and grow uncontrollably. —Carrie Madormo, Rn, Health, 13 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Latin, belly, womb; probably akin to Greek hoderos belly, Sanskrit udara

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

uterus

noun

uter·​us ˈyüt-ə-rəs 

plural uteruses or uteri -ˌrī 

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

called also womb

Medical Definition

uterus

noun

uter·​us ˈyüt-ə-rəs 

plural uteri -ˌrī  also uteruses

: 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

see cervix sense 2a, corpus uteri, endometrium, fundus sense c, myometrium, perimetrium