Postmenopausal

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Belonging to the stage in a woman's life after menstrual periods have stopped
2. Related to the changes and health implications experienced after the end of menstrual cycles
3. Characterized by the physiological and hormonal changes that occur in women after they have ceased menstruation

Etymology: "Postmenopausal" is a plain compound: the Latin prefix "post-", meaning "after", attached to "menopausal". The base word is itself built from "menopause", which was coined in English in the 19th century from Greek roots. "Menopause" joins "mēn" (month) with "pausis" (cessation), from "pauein" (to stop), so it literally names the stopping of the monthly cycle. The Greek "mēn" is the same root that gives "month" and "moon" in related languages, which is why the term keeps a link to the lunar calendar. The "-al" ending turns the noun into an adjective, meaning "relating to" the condition, and "post-" then places the period after it. The result is a clinical adjective that appears frequently in medical writing and needs no special history beyond the sum of its parts.