English
menopause
Menopause comes from French ménopause, from Latin pausa ‘a pause, halt, stop, cessation, end’, and perhaps ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *peh₂w- ‘few, little’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*peh₂w-1‘few, little’uncertain
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEπαύω2paúō‘to make an end of, stop, abate’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEπαῦσις2paûsis‘stopping, ceasing’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpausa2‘a pause, halt, stop, cessation, end’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentménopause2
- Englishearliest quotation 2023menopause2
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek παύω, which cites LIV, Beekes
- 2 Wiktionary, English menopause
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2023, Jonathan Ames, ‘Menopausal’ director wins discrimination case over Bibimone: “The encounter soured Thomas's relationship with Jessa, who had…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*peh₂w-Wiktionary, Ancient Greek παύω, which cites LIV, Beekes‘few, little’uncertain
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEπαύωWiktionary, English menopausepaúō‘to make an end of, stop, abate’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEπαῦσιςWiktionary, English menopausepaûsis‘stopping, ceasing’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpausaWiktionary, English menopause‘a pause, halt, stop, cessation, end’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentménopauseWiktionary, English menopause
- Englishearliest quotation 2023menopauseWiktionary, English menopause. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2023, Jonathan Ames, ‘Menopausal’ director wins discrimination case over Bibimone: “The encounter soured Thomas's relationship with Jessa, who had…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *peh₂w- ‘few, little’
few, poor, fewer, puppy, pupil, puppet, pediatrics, filly, pedagogy, pave, puerile, orthopedics, pupa, paucity, 28 more
through Ancient Greek παύω ‘to make an end of, stop, abate’
through Ancient Greek παῦσις ‘stopping, ceasing’
through Latin pausa ‘a pause, halt, stop, cessation, end’
Today it means
noun The period in a woman's life when menstruation becomes irregular and less frequent before eventually stopping altogether, usually accompanied by a range of unpleasant symptoms; the period spanning perimenopause up to postmenopause.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “menopause”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Ancient Greek παύω. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *peh₂w- / menopause