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pregnancy

[preg-nuh n-see]
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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR pregnancy ON THESAURUS.COM

noun, plural preg·nan·cies.

the state, condition, or quality of being pregnant.

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RELATED WORDS

fertilization, propagation, gravidity, impregnation, germination, child-bearing

Origin of pregnancy

First recorded in 1520–30; pregn(ant)1 + -ancy
Related formspost·preg·nan·cy, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for pregnancy

Contemporary Examples of pregnancy

Historical Examples of pregnancy

  • The hygiene of pregnancy, labor and its sequels, is of the highest importance.

  • Figure 21 shows a human embryo at the beginning of the fifth week of pregnancy.

  • The phenomena of pregnancy, birth and suckling are known to all, so that I shall be brief.

  • They will then cease to hide their pregnancy and to be ashamed of it.

  • Pregnancy and childbirth play a large part in their delirium.

British Dictionary definitions for pregnancy

pregnancy

noun plural -cies

the state or condition of being pregnant
the period from conception to childbirth
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 pregnancy
n.

1520s (originally figurative), from pregnant (adj.1) + -cy. Literal use attested from 1590s.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Medicine definitions for pregnancy

pregnancy

[prĕg′nən-sē]

n.

The condition of a woman or female mammal from conception until birth; the condition of being pregnant.
The period during which a woman or female mammal is pregnant.cyesis
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Science definitions for pregnancy

pregnancy

[prĕg′nən-sē]

The condition of carrying developing offspring within the body.
The time period during which this condition exists; gestation.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.