neonatal

American  

[nee-oh-neyt-l] / ˌni oʊˈneɪt l /

adjective

1. of or relating to newborn children.

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neonatal British  

/ ˌniːəʊˈneɪtəl /

adjective

1. of or relating to newborn children, esp in the first week of life and up to four weeks old

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Usage

What does neonatal mean? Neonatal is an adjective used to describe things related to newborn babies and their care. Neonatal is a technical term used in the context of medicine and healthcare. You’re most likely to see it used in terms like neonatal unit, neonatal care, and neonatal nurse, and in the names of certain medical conditions that affect newborns. Its noun form, neonate, is another word for a newborn. Example: My sister is a neonatal nurse who specializes in caring for newborns with certain health problems.

Other Word Forms

• postneonatal
  adjective
• neonatally
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of neonatal

First recorded in 1900–05; neo- + natal

Explanation

Neonatal describes the first month of a person's life. The neonatal period is that first month after a baby is born. There are also neonatal disorders that require neonatal care. Like many babies, the word neonatal's parents are from different places — neo comes from Greek and means “new,” and natal comes from the Latin word natus which means “to be born.” Neonatal means newborn. The neonatal stage is the first month of life, when a baby is tiniest and most fragile. Babies born at a hospital who can’t come home right away sometimes stay in a neonatal intensive care unit, where neonatal nurses care for them.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

neonatal

The door to the neonatal intensive care unit was locked, according to Jaweria, a woman who said she lost her infant in the blaze.

From Barron's ● Aug. 26, 2026

Those much higher payments help support emergency departments, trauma centers, neonatal intensive-care units, behavioral-health programs, teaching hospitals and rural facilities, as well as investment in technology, cybersecurity and emergency preparedness.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026

Comparisons with living animals suggested that the feature was a neonatal line, a distinct growth ring that can occur in bones or teeth.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 13, 2026

“When that many vulnerable animals arrive before our foster network has fully mobilized, the gap between what a shelter can provide and what neonatal kittens need to survive becomes devastating,” Amster said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026

It has been a difficult month: a rotation in neonatal intensive care.

From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver