Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun The portion of the body in the pelvis occupied by urogenital passages and the rectum, bounded in front by the pubic arch, in the back by the coccyx, and laterally by part of the hipbone.
  • noun The region between the scrotum and the anus in males, and between the posterior vulva junction and the anus in females.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun The region of the body between the thighs, extending from the anus to the fourchette in the female, or to the scrotum in the male.
  • noun The region included by the outlet of the pelvis, extending from the apex of the subpubic arch in front to the tip of the coccyx behind, and bounded laterally by the conjoined pubic and ischiatic rami, the tuberosities of the ischia, and the great sacrosciatic ligaments.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun (Anat.) The region which is included within the outlet of the pelvis, and is traversed by the urinogenital canal and the rectum.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun anatomy Region between the genital area and the anus in both sexes.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun the general region between the anus and the genital organs

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English, from Medieval Latin perinaeon, from Greek perinaion : peri-, peri- + inān, to excrete.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From post‐Classical Latin perineum (Classical Latin: perinaeon), from Ancient Greek περίναιον (perínaion) or περίνεος (períneos), from περί ("peri-") with ἰνέω ("I empty, evacuate").

Support

Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word perineum.

Examples

  • Perenial tear – a tear in perineum (a. k.a ‘taint) 7.

    RICKI LAKE GIVES BIRTH ON FILM 2008

  • Women who had a planned section (not having had one before) will have less perineal pain (the perineum is the area between your legs) and less risk of vaginal bleeding after the baby is born.

    Dr Dillner's health dilemmas: should I have a caesarean section? 2011

  • She told me to consciously relax my perineum, which is located at the base of the body, between the rectum and the sexual organs.

    Love For No Reason Marci Shimoff 2010

  • The perineum is the piece of skin between the anus and the genitals.

    Insulated Panel: Cresting the Summit, Jumping the Shark BikeSnobNYC 2010

  • She told me to consciously relax my perineum, which is located at the base of the body, between the rectum and the sexual organs.

    Love For No Reason Marci Shimoff 2010

  • Firstjust above the perineum, which is the region between the genitals and the anus

    Divine Soul Songs Dr. Zhi Gang sha 2009

  • Firstjust above the perineum, which is the region between the genitals and the anus

    Divine Soul Songs Dr. Zhi Gang sha 2009

  • Firstjust above the perineum, which is the region between the genitals and the anus

    Divine Soul Songs Dr. Zhi Gang sha 2009

  • The perineum is the area between your vaginal opening and your rectum.

    Our Bodies, Ourselves: Pregnancy and Birth THE BOSTON WOMEN’S HEALTH BOOK COLLECTIVE 2008

  • An episiotomy is an incision made along the perineum, which is the area between the vagina and the rectum, to allow more room for the baby.

    Our Bodies, Ourselves: Pregnancy and Birth THE BOSTON WOMEN’S HEALTH BOOK COLLECTIVE 2008

Comments

Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.

  • "I'm not exactly a romantic person, but I have to admit that the sight of her pale perineum has always intoxicated me."

    August 20, 2008

  • "Sexual relations are better if the male perineum is in good shape." Tips from N Sarkozy's trainer Julie Imperiali. In The Guardian This Week What They Said of Saturday 24th January 2009.

    January 25, 2009

  • o_O

    January 25, 2009

  • chode

    November 18, 2010