dess

Estimated CEFR level: C2 — Proficiency

Estimated from word frequency; not an official CEFR classification.

Definition

  1. noun a potent estrogen used in medicine and in feed for livestock and poultry
  2. noun synthetic nonsteroid with the properties of estrogen; formerly used to treat menstrual problems but was found to be associated with vaginal cancers in the daughters of women so treated during pregnancy

Etymology

Probably a clipping of desperate.

Synonyms

diethylstilbestrol, diethylstilboestrol, stilbestrol, stilboestrol, DES

A single word — an entire dictionary opens.

Type a word, a sentence, a book title, or a link to an English article. WordNet and the Classics answer.

Try

A library of classics · a vault of words · instant etymology & meaning

Continue reading