menstrual cycle

menstrual cycle  (mnstr-l)

The recurring monthly series of physiological changes in women and other female primates in which an egg is produced in the process known as ovulation, and the uterine lining thickens to allow for implantation if fertilization occurs. If the egg is not fertilized, the lining of the uterus breaks down and is discharged during menstruation. See also ovulationmenstruation

Thesaurus

Noun

1.

menstrual cycle - a recurring cycle (beginning at menarche and ending at menopause) in which the endometrial lining of the uterus prepares for pregnancy; if pregnancy does not occur the lining is shed at menstruation; "the average menstrual cycle is 28 days" oscillation, cycle - a single complete execution of a periodically repeated phenomenon; "a year constitutes a cycle of the seasons" fertile period, fertile phase - the time in the menstrual cycle when fertilization is most likely to be possible (7 days before to 7 days after ovulation) menstrual phase - the phase of the menstrual cycle during which the lining of the uterus is shed (the first day of menstrual flow is considered day 1 of the menstrual cycle) luteal phase, secretory phase - the second half of the menstrual cycle after ovulation; the corpus luteum secretes progesterone which prepares the endometrium for the implantation of an embryo; if fertilization does not occur then menstrual flow begins safe period - that time during a woman's menstrual cycle during which conception is least likely to occur (usually immediately before of after menstruation)