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hysterectomy

American

[his-tuh-rek-tuh-mee] / ˌhɪs təˈrɛk tə mi /

noun

Surgery.

excision of the uterus.

hysterectomy British

/ ˌhɪstəˈrɛktəmɪ /

noun

surgical removal of the uterus

"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

hysterectomy Scientific

/ hĭs′tə-rĕk′tə-mē /

Surgical removal of part or all of the uterus.

hysterectomy Cultural

The surgical removal of all or part of the uterus.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

hysterectomies

plural

Etymology

Origin of hysterectomy

First recorded in 1885–90; hyster- + -ectomy

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.

After I woke up at the hospital, I needed multiple surgeries, blood transfusions and a partial hysterectomy.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 11, 2026

Wondering about a link between emissions from nearby facilities and her own health woes, Nolan moved away after undergoing a hysterectomy, she said.

From Salon • May 10, 2026

But that wasn't the end of Jessica's ordeal, after a further MRI in February 2023 found the tumour was still there and meant she needed to have a hysterectomy in July 2023.

From BBC • Jan. 25, 2026

Lee’s mom sewed children’s clothes at a textile plant before dying of complications from a hysterectomy at 35 when Lee was 16.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 27, 2025

Then, at twenty-one, Grandma Jenny was diagnosed with cervical cancer and had a hysterectomy.

From "Three Little Words: A Memoir" by Ashley Rhodes-Courter

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