gynecology

noun

gy·​ne·​col·​o·​gy ˌgī-nə-ˈkä-lə-jē  ˌji- 

: a branch of medicine that deals with the diseases and routine physical care of the reproductive system of women

gynecologic

ˌgī-ni-kə-ˈlä-jik  ˌji- 

adjective

or gynecological

ˌgī-ni-kə-ˈlä-ji-kəl  ˌji- 

Examples of gynecology in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

In general, vaginal bleeding is one of the most common reasons pregnant people are admitted to the hospital, Mariam Naqvi, MD, a maternal fetal medicine doctor and associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Cedars-Sinai, tells SELF. —Lisa McCarty, SELF, 21 May 2025

Cooper Owens has written about the birth of modern gynecology, including how 19th century physicians experimented on enslaved women who were not able to consent or object. —Sarah Boden, NPR, 20 May 2025

Mood Stabilizers and Menopause Approximately 2.2 million women enter menopause each year, but only 31.3% of U.S. obstetrics and gynecology (OB-GYN) residency program directors surveyed in 2024 reported having a menopause curriculum in their residency program. —Carmen Rios, Flow Space, 14 May 2025

This year, the survey and subsequent ranking will cover the best hospitals across 12 medical fields: cardiology, cardiac surgery, endocrinology, gastroenterology, neurology, neurosurgery, pediatrics, pulmonology, obstetrics and gynecology, oncology, orthopedics and urology. —Newsweek Rankings, MSNBC Newsweek, 12 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

probably borrowed from German Gynäkologie, borrowed from New Latin gynaecologia, from gynaeco- gyneco- + -logia -logy

Note: The Latin term appears in the titles of the German physician Martin Schurig's Gynaecologia historico-medica (Dresden, 1730) and in the German humanist and physician Johann Peter Lotichius's Gynaicologia, id est, de nobilitate et perfectione sexus feminei (Rinteln, 1630). Neither work, however, dealt with gynecology as a branch of medicine. Schurig's book dealt with female sexual behavior from a medical and legal standpoint, and Lotichius discussed the nature of women and challenged the ancients' belief in female inferiority.

First Known Use

1828, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for gynecology

• aetiology
• anthropology
• archaeology
• archeology
• audiology
• cardiology
• climatology
• cohomology
• cosmetology
• criminology
• demonology
• dermatology

Kids Definition

gynecology

noun

gy·​ne·​col·​o·​gy ˌgīn-i-ˈkäl-ə-jē  ˌjin- 

: a branch of medicine that is concerned with the diseases and routine medical care of the reproductive system of women

Medical Definition

gynecology

noun

gy·​ne·​col·​o·​gy

variants or chiefly British gynaecology

ˌgīn-ə-ˈkäl-ə-jē  ˌjin- 

plural gynecologies

: a branch of medicine that deals with the diseases and routine physical care of the reproductive system of women

gynecologic

ˌgīn-i-kə-ˈläj-ik  ˌjin- 

adjective

or gynecological

-i-kəl 

or chiefly British gynaecologic or gynaecological