tenesmus

[ tuh-nez-muhs, -nes- ]

/ təˈnɛz məs, -ˈnɛs- /

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noun Pathology.

a straining to urinate or defecate, without the ability to do so.

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Origin of tenesmus

1520–30; <Medieval Latin, variant of Latin tēnesmos<Greek teinesmós, equivalent to teín(ein) to stretch + -esmos noun suffix

Words nearby tenesmus

tenebrism, tenebrous, Tenedos, tenement, Tenerife, tenesmus, tenet, tenfold, ten-four, ten-gallon hat, tenge

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use tenesmus in a sentence

This is called tenesmus, and the straining from it has frequently produced abortion.
The Matron's Manual of Midwifery, and the Diseases of Women During Pregnancy and in Childbed|Frederick Hollick
Of tenesmus I happened to hear of but a single instance, though the Laplanders eat so much cheese and drink water.
Lachesis Lapponica|Carl von Linn
To be used in alvine fluxes, to allay the irritation which occasions constant tenesmus.
Mrs. Hale's Receipts for the Million|Sarah Josepha Hale
A discharge of blood and mucus from the intestines attended with tenesmus.
A Treatise on Anatomy, Physiology, and Hygiene (Revised Edition)|Calvin Cutter

In half an hour there was abdominal pain, diarrhœa, and tenesmus, and frequent painful micturition.
Poisons: Their Effects and Detection|Alexander Wynter Blyth

British Dictionary definitions for tenesmus

tenesmus

/ (tɪˈnɛzməs, -ˈnɛs-) /

noun

pathol an ineffective painful straining to empty the bowels in response to the sensation of a desire to defecate, without producing a significant quantity of faeces

Derived forms of tenesmus

tenesmic, adjective

Word Origin for tenesmus

C16: from Medieval Latin, from Latin tēnesmos, from Greek teinesmos, from teinein to strain

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