fetal

American  

[feet-l] / ˈfit l /

especially British, foetal

adjective

Embryology.

1. of, relating to, or having the character of a fetus.

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fetal British  

/ ˈfiːtəl /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or resembling a fetus

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Other Word Forms

• postfetal
  adjective
• postfoetal
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of fetal

First recorded in 1735–45; fet(us) + -al ¹

Explanation

Something that's fetal relates to the developing offspring of an animal before it's born. Fetal growth can be measured using sonograms and other tools. A fetal animal is also called a fetus, and something humans have in common with all other animals is our beginning in a fetal form, before our birth. Fetal development describes the way a fetus grows and changes over time, and when someone's in a fetal position, they're curled forward with bent arms and legs — like a fetus in its mother's womb. Fetal stems from the Latin fetus, "the bearing of young," or "a bringing forth."

Example Sentences

Good studied creative writing at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia, and in 2020 she won an undergraduate prize from the Academy of American Poets for her piece titled On Learning to Dissect Fetal Pigs.

From BBC • Jan. 8, 2026

Fetal cells can seemingly weave themselves into a mother’s damaged tissue and repair it.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 4, 2025

The research was presented at the Society for Maternal Fetal Medicine’s annual pregnancy meeting in National Harbor, Md. An abstract was published in a supplement to the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology in January.

From New York Times • Feb. 12, 2024

Fetal alcohol syndrome disorder can take a variety of forms.

From Salon • Nov. 17, 2023

Fetal hormones, taking chromosomal cues, inhibit Miillerian structures, promote Wolffian ducts.

From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides