climacteric Hear it!

climacteric definition

cli·mac·teric (klī mak′tər ik, klī′mak ter′ik)

noun

  1. a period in the life of a person when an important physiological change occurs; specif., the period of menopause
  2. any crucial period

Etymology: L climactericus < Gr klimaktērikos < klimaktēr, round of a ladder < klimax, ladder: see climax

adjective

of or resembling a climacteric; crucial
also climacterical cli′·mac·ter′i·cal

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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