noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun

1. 1
   The onset of menstruation; a girl's first period.

   "How old is she? Nine? Ten? The menarche is not far off – a hint of a bosom, poor child."

2. 2
   the first occurrence of menstruation in a woman wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms

menophaniaspermarche

Antonyms

All antonyms

menopause

Example

More examples

"Menopause is the opposite of menarche."

Etymology

First attested 1900, from German Menarche, formed from meno- + -arche.

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.