(tĕsˈtĭs)
noun pl. tes·tes (-tēz) - The reproductive gland in a male vertebrate, the source of spermatozoa and the androgens, normally occurring paired in an external scrotum in humans and certain other mammals.
- An analogous gland in an invertebrate animal, such as a hydra or a mollusk.
Word History: The resemblance between
testimony, testify, testis, and
testicle shows an etymological relationship, but linguists are not agreed on precisely how English
testis came to have its current meaning. The Latin
testis originally meant “witness,” and etymologically means “third (person) standing by”: the
te- part comes from an older
tri-, a combining form of the word for “three,” and
-stis is a noun derived from the Indo-European root
stā- meaning “stand.” How this also came to refer to the body part(s) is disputed. An old theory has it that the Romans placed their right hands on their testicles and swore by them before giving testimony in court. Another theory says that the sense of testicle in Latin
testis is due to a calque, or loan translation, from Greek. The Greek noun
parastatēs means “defender (in law), supporter” (
para- “by, alongside,” as in
paramilitary and
-statēs from
histanai, “to stand”). In the dual number, used in many languages for naturally occurring, contrasting, or complementary pairs such as hands, eyes, and ears,
parastatēs had the technical medical sense “testicles,” that is “two glands side by side.” The Romans simply took this sense of
parastatēs and added it to
testis, the Latin word for legal supporter, witness.
