estrus

American

[es-truhs] / ˈɛs trəs /

Rarely estrum

noun

Zoology.

the period of heat or rut; the period of maximum sexual receptivity of a female mammal.
estrous cycle.

estrus British

/ ˈɛstrəs, ˈiːstrəs /

noun

the usual US spelling of oestrus

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

estrus Scientific

/ ĕs′trəs /

A regularly recurring period in female mammals other than humans during which the animal is sexually receptive. Estrus occurs around the time of ovulation.
Also called heat

Other Word Forms

estrous

adjective

Etymology

Origin of estrus

First recorded in 1885–90; from Latin oestrus oestrus

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023