testis
[tes-tis]
- the male gonad or reproductive gland, either of two oval glands located in the scrotum.
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Origin of testis
1675–85; < Latin: “witness, spectator, testicle.” The sense “male gonad” is a loan translation from Greek parastátēs “bystander, supporter (at law),” in medical usage (in the dual and plural) “the (pair of) glands lying side by side, the testicles” (equivalent to para- para-1 + the combining form -statēs, from histánai “to make stand.”) Compare Greekprostátēs “one who stands in front, ruler,” in medical usage “the gland lying in front, the prostate”
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Related Words
genitalia, nuts, gonads, vulva, testes, stones, pudenda, ballocks, balls, rocks, heart, marrow, stomach, tongue, tripe, brains, chitlins, chitterlings, gibletsExamples from the Web for testis
Historical Examples
The outer coat of the testis is called the tunica albuginea.
The Biology, Physiology and Sociology of ReproductionWinfield S. Hall
The testis of the male lies in the thorax, just below the heart.
The Life of CrustaceaWilliam Thomas Calman
Spermatozoa originate in the testis as cells, which are filled with granules.
Plain Facts for Old and YoungJohn Harvey Kellogg
The number of segmental tubes connected with the testis varies very greatly.
The Works of Francis Maitland Balfour, Volume III (of 4)Francis Maitland Balfour
In the case of Reptilia the anterior two or three segmental tubes in the region of the testis probably have this function.
The Works of Francis Maitland Balfour, Volume III (of 4)Francis Maitland Balfour
testis
- another word for testicle
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Word Origin
C17: from Latin, literally: witness (to masculinity)
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for testis
n.
(plural testes), 1704, from Latin testis "testicle," usually regarded as a special application of testis "witness" (see testament), presumably because it "bears witness" to virility (cf. Greek parastates, literally "one that stands by;" and French slang témoins, literally "witnesses"). But Buck thinks Greek parastatai "testicles" has been wrongly associated with the legal sense of parastates "supporter, defender" and suggests instead parastatai in the sense of twin "supporting pillars, props of a mast," etc. Walde, meanwhile, suggests a connection between testis and testa "pot, shell, etc."
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
testis
(tĕs′tĭs)- The male reproductive gland, the source of spermatozoa and the androgens, normally occurring paired in an external scrotum.didymus orchis
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
testis
[tĕs′tĭs]
- The primary reproductive organ of male animals, in which sperm and the male sex hormones (androgens) are produced. In most vertebrates, the testes are contained inside the body. In many mammals, however, the testes are enclosed in an external scrotum.
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The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.