vas deferens

noun

vas def·er·ens | \ ˈvas-ˈde-fə-rənz

, -ˌrenz\

plural vasa deferentia\ ˈvā-zə-ˌde-fə-ˈren(t)-sh(ē-)ə

How to pronounce vasa deferentia (audio)

Definition of vas deferens

: a sperm-carrying duct especially of a higher vertebrate that in the human male is a thick-walled tube about two feet (0.61 meters) long that begins at and is continuous with the tail of the epididymis and eventually joins the duct of the seminal vesicle to form the ejaculatory duct

Examples of vas deferens in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

During a vasectomy, doctors cut or block the vas deferens, one of two tubes in the scrotum that carries sperm from the testes to the urethra, in two places. — Dara T. Mathis, SELF, "We Need to Stop Acting Like Vasectomies Are Heroic," 29 Aug. 2019 Men also have the option of a vasectomy, which involves cutting the vas deferens to prevent semen from making it from the testicles to the prostate. — Sarah Jacoby, SELF, "Hold On Everyone, Male Birth Control Still Isn't Happening Anytime Soon," 22 Mar. 2018 The idea, discovered by biomedical engineer Sujoy Guha of the Indian Institute of Technology, involves injecting a polymer gel into the vas deferens to block sperm, rather than cutting or tying the vas (a vasectomy). — Julia Belluz, Vox, "A pill, a gel, and a nonsurgical vasectomy are making their way through clinical trials.," 4 May 2018 Other forms of male birth control in the works include a topical gel, a gel injected into the vas deferens that mimics the effects of a vasectomy, and an injectable hormone combination. — Sarah Jacoby, SELF, "Hold On Everyone, Male Birth Control Still Isn't Happening Anytime Soon," 22 Mar. 2018 Vasalgel is a polymer that is injected into the vas deferens, which transports sperm to the ejaculatory ducts. — Hannah Flynn, Ars Technica, "More than half a century later, where’s the male pill?," 28 Feb. 2018 The injection requires only one incision to reach the vas deferens, and can be done easily as an outpatient procedure. — Ben Panko, Smithsonian, "Contraceptive Gel Called the “IUD For Men” Makes It Through Monkey Trials," 8 Feb. 2017

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

Keep scrolling for more

Learn More about vas deferens

Dictionary Entries near vas deferens

Statistics for vas deferens

Last Updated

24 Sep 2019

Look-up Popularity

Time Traveler for vas deferens

The first known use of vas deferens was in 1578

See more words from the same year

Keep scrolling for more

More Definitions for vas deferens

vas deferens

noun

vas def·er·ens | \ -ˈdef-ə-rənz, -ˌrenz

plural vasa deferentia\ -ˌdef-ə-ˈren-ch(ē-)ə

Medical Definition of vas deferens

: a sperm-carrying duct especially of a higher vertebrate that in humans is a small but thick-walled tube about two feet (0.6 meter) long formed by the union of the vasa efferentia, is greatly convoluted in its proximal portion, begins at and is continuous with the tail of the epididymis, runs in the spermatic cord through the inguinal canal, and descends into the pelvis where it joins the duct of the seminal vesicle to form the ejaculatory duct

— called also ductus deferens, spermatic duct