WHAT IS IT?

Sternutation

This is the medical name for sneezing. We sneeze to remove irritants or particles from the nasal cavities. One of the first uses of the word was found in a 16th-century book on midwifery, in a section about babies suffering from frequent “sternutation and sneesynge”. It’s derived from the Latin “sternutare” which comes from the Latin “sterno” meaning to stretch out, spread out, strew, or scatter.