midwife

American  

[mid-wahyf] / ˈmɪdˌwaɪf /

noun

• midwives
  plural

1. a person trained to assist women in childbirth.

2. a person or thing that produces or aids in producing something new or different.

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verb (used with object)

midwifed, midwived, midwifing, midwiving

1. to assist in the birth of (a baby).

2. to produce or aid in producing (something new).

   to midwife a new generation of computers.

midwife British  

/ ˈmɪdˌwaɪf /

noun

1. a person qualified to deliver babies and to care for women before, during, and after childbirth

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• midwives
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of midwife

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English midwif, from mid “with, accompanying” ( Old English; see also meta-) + wif “woman” ( Old English wīf; see wife)

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Explanation

A midwife is someone whose job involves helping women give birth to babies. Some pregnant women get their prenatal care from a midwife, as well as delivering their babies with a midwife's help. There are different categories of midwives — lay midwives attend home births, and nurse midwives also assist birthing women at hospitals and birth centers. In either case, a midwife is trained to understand the process of birth and techniques to make it easier and safe for mothers and newborn babies. Midwife literally means "woman who is with," or "woman assisting," from the Middle English mid, "with," and wif, "woman."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

midwife midwives midwifed midwifing midwived

"Maisie's heart rate had dropped and a midwife ran in and said 'don't panic, but I need to pull the emergency cord - you're having your baby'," Danielle said.

From BBC ● Nov. 2, 2026

Former nurse and midwife Helen Haines entered parliament in 2019, earning respect across the political divide for her efforts to stamp out corruption and bolster transparency.

From Barron's ● Oct. 20, 2026

Haines entered parliament in 2019 after working as a nurse and midwife, becoming known for stances such as supporting stronger climate action.

From Barron's ● Oct. 19, 2026

The project's dedicated midwife, Adele Martin - having built up trust with pregnant mothers - is the one who has to step in.

From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026

The midwife, busy with her own importance, did not notice.

From "The Midwife's Apprentice" by Karen Cushman

“Cárdenas was, in a real sense, one of the midwives of Mexico’s democratic transition,” said Kathleen Bruhn, a political science professor specializing in Mexico at the University of California.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 29, 2026

Because she required specialist care, midwives at Daisy Hill in Newry wanted to send Natasha Daryaie to Craigavon Area Hospital but were told there was no room.

From BBC ● Oct. 27, 2026

Dale Spence, the director of the Royal College of Midwives in Northern Ireland, said to provide the care that women deserve, more midwives were required and that those who are working are feeling overburdened.

From BBC ● Oct. 27, 2026

The number of midwives employed in the acute maternity units at Daisy Hill and Craigavon has fallen since October 2019.

From BBC ● Oct. 27, 2026

I had Grand Maester Pycelle and an army of midwives, and 1 had my brother.

From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin

The actually existing Mets were also midwifed by Gotham honchos.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 27, 2026

L.A. didn’t just invent noir; it midwifed speculative fiction.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 11, 2023

"It's not going to stop with Black studies, it will continue to all the other subjects and knowledges that are midwifed and have been midwifed by Black studies."

From Salon ● Mar. 31, 2023

And when four black freshmen from North Carolina A&T State University occupied the orange and green stools at Woolworth’s whites-only lunch counter in 1960, Greensboro midwifed a sit-in movement that spread through the South.

From New York Times ● Oct. 24, 2015

Unable to reach his sons, Dad called Rob and Diane Hardy, because Mother had midwifed five of their eight children.

From "Educated" by Tara Westover

“There is lots to be proud of, including midwifing ten new plays by women playwrights from Los Angeles, into the American theatre through our Writers Workshop,” he wrote.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 2, 2022

And James will ironically be in the position of midwifing the next phase of America’s gun movement.

From Slate ● Sep. 3, 2020

Mrs. Maas, perhaps best known for midwifing the “I Love New York” campaign in the 1970s, died Nov. 16 at 86.

From Washington Post ● Nov. 26, 2018

However, Campbell is also sharply scrutinized for his role in midwifing and unleashing Dianetics.

From Nature ● Oct. 9, 2018

In a place with deep and binding tethers to the past, Katherine Johnson, a black woman, was midwifing the future.

From "Hidden Figures" by Margot Lee Shetterly

Langhorne was midwived in a Bethesda hospital, the middle of three sons to a father who ran a concrete company.

From Washington Post ● Oct. 5, 2015

I pretend neither to the spirit of prophecy, nor to any uncommon skill in predicting a crisis; much less to tell when it begins to be nascent, or is fairly midwived into the world.

From James Otis, the pre-revolutionist by John Clark Ridpath

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