osteoporosis

/ˌɒstiəʊpəˈɹəʊsɪs/

osteoporosis

English Noun Top 49,209

Definition

A disease, occurring especially in women following menopause, in which the bones become extremely porous and are subject to fracture.

Etymology

From Ancient Greek ὀστέον (ostéon, “bone”) + Ancient Greek πώρωσις (pṓrōsis, “petrification, callousness”), from Ancient Greek πῶρος (pôros, “tuff, a porous type of rock”). By surface analysis, osteo- + pore + -osis.