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puerperium

Syllabification: (pu·er·pe·ri·um)
Pronunciation: /ˌpyo͞oərˈpi(ə)rēəm/
Definition of puerperium

noun

Medicine
  • the period of about six weeks after childbirth during which the mother’s reproductive organs return to their original nonpregnant condition.

Derivatives

puerperal

Pronunciation: /pyo͞oˈərpərəl/
adjective

Origin:

early 17th century: from Latin, from puerperus 'parturient' (from puer 'child' + -parus 'bearing')

puerperium in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of puerperium in the British & World English dictionary

Nearby words

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