# tumescence

> English word · Noun · IPA /tjuːˈmɛsəns/

## Definitions
1. A swelling due to the presence of fluid.
2. A swollen bodily organ; used especially of erectile tissue.

## Etymology
First attested 1725, from French tumescence, from Latin tumescēns (“swelling”), present participle of tumēscō (“I begin to swell”), from tumeō (“I swell”) + -ēscō (“I become”) (English -esce, in this form -escence), stem from Proto-Indo-European *tum-éh₁- (“to be swelling”), stative stem of *tum- (“to swell”).

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-09-03.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/tumescence