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: a regularly recurrent state of sexual receptivity during which the female of most mammals will accept the male and is capable of conceiving : heat
Some mares will exhibit estrus for 15 to 20 days.—Frederick Harper
also
: a single occurrence of this state
Examples of estrus in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Early Estrus Does Those with a traditional mid-November rut should see 90 to 95 percent of does enter estrus during the 11th month.
—Josh Honeycutt, Outdoor Life, 24 Oct. 2024
Electricity is used to stimulate cell division, and, when this embryo is still just a bundle of cells on the scale of micrometres, a second dog, also in estrus, is operated on to become a surrogate mother.
—Alexandra Horowitz, The New Yorker, 24 June 2024
While it’s well established that lengthening daylight triggers a cat’s estrus, the effect of rising temperatures on kitten season isn’t yet understood.
—Sachi Mulkey, WIRED, 23 Mar. 2024
Normally cycling participants earned about US$335 per 5-h shift during estrus, US$260 per shift during the luteal phase, and US$185 per shift during menstruation.
—Discover Magazine, 19 Nov. 2019
See all Example Sentences for estrus
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'estrus.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Estrus.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/estrus. Accessed 5 Nov. 2024.
Kids Definition
estrus
noun
es·trus
ˈes-trəs
1
: a periodic state during which the female of most mammals is willing to mate with the male and is capable of becoming pregnant
2
estrous
adjective
-trəs
More from Merriam-Webster on estrus
Nglish: Translation of estrus for Spanish Speakers
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about estrus
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