Gynandry

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The condition or state of having both male and female reproductive organs; the biological phenomenon where an organism exhibits characteristics of both sexes; a term used in biology to describe hermaphroditism
2. A biological condition involving the presence of male and female sexual traits in the same individual; the occurrence of combined male and female reproductive structures; a term denoting hermaphroditic features in organisms
3. A state of carrying both masculine and feminine reproductive systems simultaneously; the condition of dual sexual characteristics; terminology describing organisms with hermaphroditic anatomy

Etymology: Gynandry is built from two Greek elements: "gyne" meaning "woman" and "aner" (genitive "andros") meaning "man." Put together, the pair describes a condition in which male and female characteristics appear in one organism. The "-andry" ending is the same root that gives English "android" and "polyandry," where "andro-" signals the male half. The word is a technical coinage from classical roots rather than a term the ancient Greeks themselves used in this sense. Scientists and naturalists reached for Greek building blocks when they needed precise vocabulary for describing mixed sexual traits, which is why the word reads like a textbook label built from parts with clear, transparent meanings.

Synonyms: hermaphroditism, androgyny

Antonyms: gynandrousness absence