premenopausal
adjective
pre·men·o·paus·al
ˌprē-ˌme-nə-ˈpȯ-zəl 
-ˌmē-
variants
or less commonly pre-menopausal
: of, relating to, or being in the period preceding menopause
premenopausal women
Examples of premenopausal in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
One analysis of a US health survey found postmenopausal women were around 57 percent more likely to report sleep apnea symptoms than premenopausal women, even after adjusting for body weight.
—
Anna McKie, Wired News, 6 Mar. 2026
It had previously only been approved for premenopausal women.
—Helen Carefoot, Flow Space, 30 Dec. 2025
Spotting Lobular Breast Cancer Lobular breast cancer is also linked with dense breast tissue—a common feature among younger, premenopausal women.
—Melissa Fleur Afshar, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Oct. 2025
In a randomized clinical trial of premenopausal women prone to recurrent UTIs, those who increased their water intake by about 1.5 liters daily experienced 1.7 infections over a year, compared with 3.2 in the control group — a nearly 50% reduction.
—Dr. Jamin Brahmbhatt, CNN Money, 30 Sep. 2025
As does the rate of recurrence, or how often a UTI crops up again after treatment, which is around 19% to 36% in premenopausal people and jumps to 55% postmenopause.
—Erica Sloan, SELF, 1 Aug. 2025
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Anna McKie, Wired News, 6 Mar. 2026
It had previously only been approved for premenopausal women.
—Helen Carefoot, Flow Space, 30 Dec. 2025
Spotting Lobular Breast Cancer Lobular breast cancer is also linked with dense breast tissue—a common feature among younger, premenopausal women.
—Melissa Fleur Afshar, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Oct. 2025
In a randomized clinical trial of premenopausal women prone to recurrent UTIs, those who increased their water intake by about 1.5 liters daily experienced 1.7 infections over a year, compared with 3.2 in the control group — a nearly 50% reduction.
—Dr. Jamin Brahmbhatt, CNN Money, 30 Sep. 2025
As does the rate of recurrence, or how often a UTI crops up again after treatment, which is around 19% to 36% in premenopausal people and jumps to 55% postmenopause.
—Erica Sloan, SELF, 1 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Premenopausal.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/premenopausal. Accessed 21 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
premenopausal
adjective
pre·meno·paus·al
-ˌmen-ə-ˈpȯ-zəl, -ˌmēn-
: of, relating to, or being in the period preceding menopause and especially the perimenopausal period
premenopausal women
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