genital

English

Etymology

From Middle English genital, from Latin genitalis (“of or belonging to generation”), from genitus, past participle of gignō (“to beget, generate”); see genus.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈd͡ʒɛnətəl/, /ˈd͡ʒɛnɪtəl/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Adjective

genital (not comparable)

1. Of, or relating to biological reproduction.
2. Of, or relating to the genitalia.
   • 1981, William Irwin Thompson, The Time Falling Bodies Take to Light: Mythology, Sexuality and the Origins of Culture, London: Rider/Hutchinson & Co., page 193:

     In countless Hollywood movies we see the story of two soldiers or sailors on leave; for them the pursuit of women is simply a way of relieving a genital pressure.

3. (psychoanalysis) Of, or relating to psychosexual development during puberty.

Derived terms

Related terms

Translations

See also

• female genital mutilation

Noun

genital (plural genitals)

1. (rare, chiefly in the plural) A genital organ.
   • 1961, The Annual Survey of Psychoanalysis, (Please provide the book title or journal name):

     ( b ) the masturbation [...] served as evidence that his genital was not injured ("fixing feet")

   • 1967, Ruth G. Newman, Marjorie M. Keith, The School-centered Life Space Interview, Six Papers:

     David told of his fears of castration and his concern that his genital was not as large as another boy's on the ward, and perhaps would never be.

   • 2013, Susan Isaacs, Childhood and After: Some Essays and Clinical Studies, Routledge, →ISBN, page 164:

     […] the anxiety and distress that his genital was dirty, disgusting and dangerous to his mother (myself); the dread of the bad internalized penis and his own faeces and urine.

See also

• genitalia

Further reading

• “genital”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “genital”, in The Century Dictionary , New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.

Anagrams

• atingle, elating, gelatin, langite, tag line, tagline

German

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):

• Audio

  (file)

• Rhymes: -aːl

Adjective

genital (strong nominative masculine singular genitaler, not comparable)

1. genital

Declension

Further reading

• “genital” in Duden online
• “genital” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache

Portuguese

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: (Portugal) -al, (Brazil) -aw
• Hyphenation: ge‧ni‧tal

Adjective

genital m or f (plural genitais, not comparable)

1. genital

Noun

genital m (plural genitais)

1. (Usually plural) genital

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French génital, from Latin genitalis.

Adjective

genital m or n (feminine singular genitală, masculine plural genitali, feminine and neuter plural genitale)

1. genital

Declension

Spanish

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin genitālis.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /xeniˈtal/
• Rhymes: -al
• Syllabification: ge‧ni‧tal

Adjective

genital m or f (masculine and feminine plural genitales)

1. genital

Derived terms

Noun

genital m (plural genitales)

1. (Usually plural) genital

Further reading

• “genital”, in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014