among physicians, (from climacter, "a ladder"), a critical year in a person's life.

According to some, this is every seventh year; but others allow only those years produced by multiplying 7 by the odd number 3, 5, 7, and 9, to be climacterical. These years, they say, bring with them some remarkable change with respect to health, life, or fortune: the grand climacteric is the 63rd year; but some, making two, add to this the 81st: the other remarkable climacterics are the 7th, 21st, 35th, 49th, and 56th.