hymenoplasty

British

/ ˈhaɪmənəʊˌplæstɪ /

noun

a surgical operation to reconstruct the hymen in order to give the appearance of virginity, usually for religious or cultural reasons

"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

Etymology

Origin of hymenoplasty

C20: from _hymen + _-plasty

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.

The government is planning on banning a cosmetic surgery called hymenoplasty across the UK.

From BBC • Jan. 25, 2022

It has now included amendments in the health and care bill which would criminalise "aiding or abetting" a person carrying out hymenoplasty and could result in up to five years in prison.

From BBC • Jan. 25, 2022

The government has promised to ban virginity testing and revirginisation surgery, known as hymenoplasty, in the UK "as soon as possible".

From BBC • Oct. 12, 2021

But he added: "I will be pushing as much as possible to make sure that we ban both virginity testing and hymenoplasty as soon as possible."

From BBC • Oct. 12, 2021

Though the number of Muslim women in the UK, Germany, Belgium, and France undergoing the procedure is unknown, there's a consensus among doctors that hymenoplasty is increasingly common.

From Time Magazine Archive

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