A pair of small, oval-shaped sex glands (gonads) in a woman, which produce the key female sex hormones, estrogen and progesterone, as well as the eggs (ow; singular, ovum). The ovaries are on either side of the uterus in the lower abdomen, lying under the fallopian tubes. At birth, a baby girl’s ovaries each contain about one million follicles, egg-producing structures that remain immature until puberty.
The main female reproductive organs which produce the ova (egg cells) and steroid hormones in a regular cycle in response to hormones from the anterior pituitary gland. Situated one on each side of the uterus in the lower abdomen, each ovary contains numerous follicles within which the ova develop. Only a small proportion of these reach maturity, when the ovum is described as a Graafian follicle. Ovulation occurs and, if the ovum is fertilized, a pregnancy may develop.
Female sexual glands that function in reproduction, as well as determining female sexual characteristics.
The two female reproductive glands, located one on each side of the body, a few inches below the waist.