epididymis

American  

[ep-i-did-uh-mis] / ˌɛp ɪˈdɪd ə mɪs /

noun

Anatomy.

epididymides plural

1. an elongated organ on the posterior surface of a testis that stores sperm while they mature and constitutes the convoluted beginning of the vas deferens.

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epididymis British  

/ ˌɛpɪˈdɪdɪmɪs /

noun

1. anatomy a convoluted tube situated along the posterior margin of each testis, in which spermatozoa are stored and conveyed to the vas deferens

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• epididymal
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• epididymides
  plural

Etymology

Origin of epididymis

1600–10; < Greek epididymís; see epi-, didymous

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

epididymis epididymides

This had effects on the reproductive organs of the animals, including the epididymis.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 5, 2024

For this investigation, the researchers from the Institute of Agricultural Sciences used samples of testicles, epididymis and vas deferens from 118 freshly slaughtered bulls of reproductive age.

From Science Daily ● Feb. 16, 2024

Once those RNA packages arrive at the epididymis, the hypothesis goes, they prompt a of cascade of changes at conception that evade the stripping, or rebooting, process and the subsequent reshuffling during early development.

From New York Times ● Dec. 10, 2018

A complex network of small tubes—the seminiferous tubules—travel throughout the testicles, allowing the sperm to reach their next destination: the epididymis.

From Salon ● Jul. 15, 2018

Ms., the mesonephros, is the epididymis in the male, and is reduced in the female; Ms.d., its duct, is the vas deferens in the male, and persists only as the urinary receptacle in the female.

From Text Book of Biology, Part 1: Vertebrata by Wells, H. G. (Herbert George)

Figure 27.2 Male Reproductive System The structures of the male reproductive system include the testes, the epididymides, the penis, and the ducts and glands that produce and carry semen.

From Textbooks ● Jun. 19, 2013

Averages of the 2 epididymides from each bull are given in Table 3; the samples from bulls 5 and 6 were combined.

From Preservation of Bull Semen at Sub-Zero Temperatures by Friedman, M. E.

Sternotherus, Terrapene, and Thamnophis are alike in completing spermatogenesis late in the season and storing spermatozoa, in the seminiferous tubules or in the epididymides, during hibernation.

From Natural History of the Ornate Box Turtle, Terrapene ornata ornata Agassiz by Legler, John M.

Sperm expelled from the epididymides in autumn matings are seemingly replaced by others from the seminiferous tubules; the epididymides become much smaller when their supply of sperm is nearly exhausted after spring mating.

From Natural History of the Ornate Box Turtle, Terrapene ornata ornata Agassiz by Legler, John M.