Epistaxis
/ˌɛpɪˈstæksɪs/noun
Bleeding from the nose.
Did you know?Epistaxis comes from Greek medical language, where the root stazein means “to drip” or “to trickle,” turning a body symptom into a precise, almost ritual-sounding diagnosis.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
Greek
ἐπιστάξις (epistáxis)
“A dripping or trickling, especially a nosebleed.”
Late Latin
Latin
epistaxis
“A nosebleed; the medical term was borrowed directly from Greek.”
Middle English
English
epistaxis
“A medical term for bleeding from the nose, used in learned writing.”
Modern English
English
epistaxis
“The clinical term for a nosebleed.”