cerumen

From Medieval Latin caerūmen, from cera +‎ -men. The appearance of the u is unexplained, but may have been influenced by words like albūmen and bitūmen.

• IPA^(key): /səˈɹuːmɛn/, /səˈɹuːmən/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -uːmɛn, -uːmən

cerumen (uncountable)

1. earwax

• earwax, wax

• cerumenolysis
• cerumenolytic
• ceruminal
• ceruminous

Borrowed from Medieval Latin caerūmen.

• IPA^(key): (Central, Balearic) [səˈɾu.mən]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [seˈɾu.men]

cerumen m (uncountable)

1. earwax

   Synonym: cera de les orelles

• ceruminós

• “cerumen”, in Diccionari de la llengua catalana [Dictionary of the Catalan Language] (in Catalan), second edition, Institute of Catalan Studies [Catalan: Institut d'Estudis Catalans], April 2007

Borrowed from French cérumen, from Latin cerumen.

cerumen n (uncountable)

1. cerumen

• IPA^(key): /θeˈɾumen/ [θeˈɾu.mẽn] (Spain)
• IPA^(key): /seˈɾumen/ [seˈɾu.mẽn] (Latin America, Philippines)
• Rhymes: -umen
• Syllabification: ce‧ru‧men

cerumen m (plural cerumenes)

1. earwax

• “cerumen”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 10 December 2024