grand climacteric


cli•mac•ter•ic

(klaɪˈmæk tər ɪk, ˌklaɪ mækˈtɛr ɪk)

n. 1. a period of decrease of reproductive capacity in men and women, culminating, in women, in the menopause. 2. any critical period. 3. a year in which important changes in health, fortune, etc., are held by some theories to occur, as one's sixty-third year (grand climacteric). adj. 4. Also, cli`mac•ter′i•cal. critical; crucial. [1595–1605; < Latin clīmactēricus < Greek klīmaktērikós, derivative of klīmaktḗr rung of a ladder, critical point in life, derivative of klîmax (see climax)] cli`mac•ter′i•cal•ly, adv.