Skip to main content
estrogen

estrogen

89 4.0
A hormone made mainly by the ovaries that helps develop and keep female body features
  • noun
  • /ˈɛstrədʒən/
  • Specialized
translation icon : estrógeno
  • However, during menopause, reduced estrogen levels cause an increased rate of loss of calcium from the skeleton.
  • estrogen levels
  • estrogen receptor
  • estrogen therapy

They don't actually contain real estrogen or real progesterone.

Autoplay Next

Examples

  • I'm at an age where my doctor talks to me about estrogen for preventing bone loss.

    Fiction book (1996)
  • So it turns out that estrogen is better at prevention than cure.

  • But nonetheless, it is estrogen that is the final step.

  • Estrogen level's been low these days.

  • Current exposure was defined as a prescription for replacement estrogen within the previous 6 months.

    Academic text (1999)
  • I read online that chickpeas are high in natural estrogen.

  • So when we're going through menopause, we are getting less estrogen and less progesterone.

  • The menopause results from significant hormonal changes with a marked reduction in estrogen production.

    Academic text (2012)
  • A principal benefit is that estrogen helps to prevent bone deterioration and susceptibility to breaks.

    Academic text (1990)
  • During menopause, many women experience symptoms due to a decrease in estrogen levels.

Compounds

estrogen antagonist
  • Specialized
6.7

A medicine that stops estrogen from working used to treat some breast cancers

Surface Forms

estrogen singular
estrogens plural

Morphology

estrogen = estrus (opaque) = estro + gen

The modern word is built from technical combining forms (e.g., 'estro-' related to estrus + '-gen' meaning 'producer'), which are not transparent to average B1 learners.

Etymology

Estrogen comes from Greek parts: oistros meaning 'frenzy' or strong sexual desire and -gen meaning 'to produce', just like in generate. So estrogen is a substance that 'produces' the changes of the female body, which explains its role in female sexual development.