menstruate
Americanverb (used without object)
-
menstruates,
present (3rd person singular)
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menstruated,
past participle, past
-
menstruating
present participle
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
menstruatesimple
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menstruatessimple
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have menstruatedperfect
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has menstruatedperfect
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am menstruatingprogressive
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are menstruatingprogressive
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is menstruatingprogressive
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have been menstruatingperfect progressive
-
has been menstruatingperfect progressive
Past
-
menstruatedsimple
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had menstruatedperfect
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was menstruatingprogressive
-
were menstruatingprogressive
-
had been menstruatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of menstruate
1640–50; v. use of earlier menstruate menstruous, Middle English < Late Latin mēnstruātus, equivalent to mēnstru ( a ) monthly courses ( see menstrual) + -ātus -ate 1
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Experts say period blood tests are not an immediate alternative to current cervical screening because only women who menstruate could use them.
From BBC ● Feb. 4, 2026
This invasive placenta is, in fact, part of the reason humans menstruate.
From Slate ● Sep. 7, 2024
As a result, today, periods are shrouded in taboos, and people who menstruate are sometimes even hesitant to talk about it with their doctors.
From Salon ● Feb. 24, 2024
All people who menstruate who live long enough go through menopause.
From Science Magazine ● Oct. 25, 2023
Other uterine hemorrhages seldom occur, and never in those who have ceased to menstruate or in whom the function has not been established.
From A System of Practical Medicine by American Authors, Vol. I Volume 1: Pathology and General Diseases by Various
Period tracking is a tool anyone who menstruates, not just professional athletes, could benefit from, experts say.
From BBC ● May 26, 2022
What if every person who menstruates, regardless of their academic or vocational potential, could just bleed in peace?
From Salon ● Jan. 2, 2022
In spite of the fact that half the world menstruates, the menstrual product industry has gone through long periods of stagnation, in part because of the taboo nature of the need.
From Slate ● Aug. 13, 2019
If you’re a person who menstruates, pack pads, tampons, or a menstrual cup.
From The Verge ● Aug. 25, 2017
And as there are thirteen lunar months a year, a woman menstruates not twelve but thirteen times a year.
From Woman Her Sex and Love Life by William J. Robinson
When Prof Gravholt asked her why she didn’t consult a doctor about not getting periods, she said there was another older woman in her family who never menstruated - so she thought it wasn’t abnormal.
From BBC ● Aug. 8, 2024
When she next menstruated, she found it to be an easy experience.
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 23, 2022
Previously, there have been reports of people who menstruated, or used to menstruate, experiencing unexpected changes to their cycles after being given their shots.
From Salon ● Jan. 7, 2022
A woman is considered to have completed menopause if she has not menstruated in a full year.
From Textbooks ● Jun. 19, 2013
She had menstruated for two years—during the first, in quite a normal manner—but during the second, had become subject to these menorrhagic accidents, since residence at boarding-school.
From The Education of American Girls by Anna C. (Anna Callender) Brackett
Soon she won’t have to deal with a monthly period either: Within a year of getting an IUD, most people stop menstruating.
From Slate ● Sep. 7, 2025
They felt worse when menstruating and thought their performance would suffer - but on average, they were 12% faster at ball-moving tasks and 25% more likely to pass a test of their anticipation skills.
From BBC ● Jun. 5, 2024
Participants who enrolled in the study between November 2018 and March 2023 -- 71,341 in total -- self-reported the age at which they first began menstruating and their race and socioeconomic status.
From Science Daily ● May 29, 2024
Hysterectomies keep them working, undistracted by doctor visits or the hardship of menstruating in a field with no access to running water, toilets or shelter.
From New York Times ● Mar. 24, 2024
I know almost everyone here has stopped menstruating.
From "In the Time of the Butterflies" by Julia Alvarez
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
