accouchement

[uh-koosh-muh nt; French a-koosh-mahn]

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noun, plural ac·couche·ments [uh-koosh-muh nts; French a-koosh-mahn] /əˈkuʃ mənts; French a kuʃˈmɑ̃/,

the confinement of childbirth; lying-in.

Origin of accouchement

1800–10; < French, derivative, with -ment -ment, of accoucher to give birth, be delivered, assist in giving birth, Old French: to lie down, take to bed, equivalent to ac- ac- + coucher to put to bed; see couch

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for accouchement

delivery, labor, childbearing, lying-in, birthing, childbirth, parturition, childbed

Examples from the Web for accouchement

Historical Examples of accouchement

A French doctor was suspended, for an error in the accouchement of a lady.
A Five Years' Residence in Buenos Ayres
George Thomas Love
According to Dalyell, an accouchement is here a fit of indigestion.
The Ocean World:
Louis Figuier
They are particularly ill-treated at the period of their accouchement.
From Paris to Pekin over Siberian Snows
Victor Meignan
A nourishing and restorative mixture during convalescence, much used among certain classes after accouchement.
Cooley's Cyclopdia of Practical Receipts and Collateral Information in the Arts, Manufactures, Professions, and Trades..., Sixth Edition, Volume I
Arnold Cooley
This occurred twice; but, after one disappointment, the accouchement was expected with all the ardour of English anticipation.
Secret History of the Court of England, from the Accession of George the Third to the Death of George the Fourth, Volume I (of 2)
Lady Anne Hamilton

British Dictionary definitions for accouchement

accouchement

noun

childbirth or the period of confinement

Word Origin for accouchement

C19: from accoucher to put to bed, to give birth. See couch

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for accouchement

1803, from French accouchement, noun of action from accoucher (see accoucheur).