testosterone

noun

tes·​tos·​ter·​one te-ˈstä-stə-ˌrōn 

1

: a hormone that is a hydroxy steroid ketone C₁₉H₂₈O₂ produced especially by the testes or made synthetically and that is responsible for inducing and maintaining male secondary sex characters

2

: qualities (such as brawn and aggressiveness) usually associated with males : manliness

Examples of testosterone in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

This can cause small cysts to form on the ovaries, which secret androgens, such as testosterone. —Corey Whelan, Verywell Health, 4 Nov. 2024

Wins, forfeits and testosterone Some 440 girls are playing boys' sports this year, Kimmerly said, often because their school doesn't offer or can't field a full team for things like lacrosse, hockey or tennis. —Neal Rubin, Detroit Free Press, 31 Oct. 2024

Prior to the treatment, weakly affiliated Democrats had a 19 percent higher basal testosterone than those who identified strongly with the party. —Gordon G. Chang, Newsweek, 31 Oct. 2024

Plus, because the rut is so near, that buck might begin searching for does. Vulnerability to Certain Tactics Sticking with the testosterone theme and more aggressive behavior, bucks are more vocal. —Josh Honeycutt, Outdoor Life, 24 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from German Testosteron, from Latin testēs testes + German -o- -o- + -steron -sterone

Note: The name was introduced by the Hungarian pharmacologists Karoly Gyula David (1905-45) and János Freud (1901-48), the Dutch endocrinologist Elisabeth Dingemanse (1886-1952), and the German-born Dutch physician and pharmacologist Ernst Laqueur (1880-1947) (all affiliated with the Pharmaco-Therapeutic Laboratory of the University of Amsterdam) in "Über krystallinisches männliches Hormon aus Hoden (Testosteron), wirksamer als aus Harn oder aus Cholesterin bereitetes Androsteron," Zeitschrift für physiologische Chemie, Band 233 (1935), pp. 281-83.

First Known Use

1935, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

testosterone

noun

tes·​tos·​ter·​one te-ˈstäs-tə-ˌrōn 

: a male hormone produced by the testes that causes the development of the male reproductive system and secondary sex characteristics

Medical Definition

testosterone

noun

tes·​tos·​ter·​one te-ˈstäs-tə-ˌrōn 

: a male hormone that is a crystalline hydroxy steroid ketone C₁₉H₂₈O₂ produced primarily by the testes or made synthetically and that is the main androgen responsible for inducing and maintaining male secondary sex characteristics see androgel, axiron