pregnant

[ preg-nuh nt ]

/ ˈprɛg nənt /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR pregnant ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

having a child or other offspring developing in the body; with child or young, as a woman or female mammal.

fraught, filled, or abounding (usually followed by with): a silence pregnant with suspense.

teeming or fertile; rich (often followed by in): a mind pregnant in ideas.

full of meaning; highly significant: a pregnant utterance.

of great importance or potential; momentous: a pregnant moment in the history of the world.

Nearby words

pregnancy gingivitis, pregnane, pregnanediol, pregnanedione, pregnanetriol, pregnant, pregnantly, preheat, prehensible, prehensile, prehension

Origin of pregnant

1375–1425; late Middle English < Latin praegnant- (stem of praegnāns), variant of praegnās, equivalent to prae- pre- + *gnāt- (akin to ( g)nātus born, gignere to bring into being) + -s nominative singular ending

Related formspreg·nant·ly, adverbpreg·nant·ness, noun

Definition for pregnant (2 of 2)

pregnant

[ preg-nuh nt ]

/ ˈprɛg nənt /

adjective Archaic.

convincing; cogent: a pregnant argument.

Origin of pregnant

1350–1400; Middle English preignant < Old French, present participle of preindre, earlier priembre to press¹ < Latin premere. Cf. print

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

Examples from the Web for pregnant

Sands was involved in a scandalous-for-the-time romance with the carpenter and there were rumors she was pregnant with his child.
New York’s Most Tragic Ghost Loves Minimalist Swedish Fashion|Nina Strochlic|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
I was pregnant, uncomfortably so, for the first time and with twins, due the following March.
I Tried to Warn You About Sleazy Billionaire Jeffrey Epstein in 2003|Vicky Ward|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
He beat me every day, even when I was seven months pregnant.
A Sunni-Shia Love Story Imperiled by al Qaeda|Ruth Michaelson|December 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
A dark minivan quickly fills with pregnant women and those carrying infants.
Inside the Smuggling Networks Flooding Europe with Refugees|Barbie Latza Nadeau|December 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Roughly one out of every 33 women who enter the federal prison system is pregnant.
The GOP’s Hidden Ban on Prison Abortions|Harold Pollack|December 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Its success is largely due to the fact that it is pregnant with a problem which, in Germany, at any rate, is of peculiar moment.
Modernities|Horace Barnett Samuel
Excuse me, do you remember how I was dressed and was I pregnant at that time?
Warren Commission (11 of 26): Hearings Vol. XI (of 15)|The President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy
It is nothing, it says nothing, therefore it is pregnant with meaning, and my Bright Water-lily will understand.
Six One-Act Plays|Margaret Scott Oliver
One would assume that pregnant and lactating females require more water than non-pregnant females.
Comparative Ecology of Pinyon Mice and Deer Mice in Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado|Charles L. Douglas
It seemed to the detective that her voice was fearful, of a pregnant warning, that she was protesting.
The Blind Spot|Austin Hall

British Dictionary definitions for pregnant

pregnant

/ (ˈprɛɡnənt) /

adjective

carrying a fetus or fetuses within the womb

full of meaning or significance

inventive or imaginative

prolific or fruitful

Derived Formspregnantly, adverb

Word Origin for pregnant

C16: from Latin praegnāns with child, from prae before + (g) nascī to be born

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 pregnant (1 of 2)

pregnant

adj.2

"convincing, weighty, pithy," late 14c., "cogent, convincing, compelling" (of evidence, an argument, etc.); sense of "full of meaning" is from c.1400. According to OED from Old French preignant, present participle of preindre "press, squeeze, stamp, crush," from earlier priembre, from Latin premere "to press" (see press (v.1)). But Watkins has it from Latin praehendere "to grasp, seize," and in Barnhart it is from Latin praegnans "with child," literally "before birth" and thus identical with pregnant (adj.1).

Word Origin and History for pregnant (1 of 2)

pregnant

adj.1

"with child," early 15c., from Latin praegnantem (nominative praegnans, originally praegnas) "with child," literally "before birth," probably from prae- "before" (see pre-) + root of gnasci "be born" (see genus).

Retained its status as a taboo word until c.1950; modern euphemisms include anticipating, enceinte, expecting, in a family way, in a delicate (or interesting) condition. Old English terms included mid-bearne, literally "with child;" bearn-eaca, literally "child-adding" or "child-increasing;" and geacnod "increased." Among c.1800 slang terms for "pregnant" was poisoned (in reference to the swelling).

pregnant

adjective

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Origin of pregnant

Definition for pregnant (2 of 2)

pregnant

adjective Archaic.

Origin of pregnant

Examples from the Web for pregnant

British Dictionary definitions for pregnant

pregnant

adjective

Word Origin for pregnant

Word Origin and History for pregnant (1 of 2)

pregnant

Word Origin and History for pregnant (1 of 2)

pregnant

Medicine definitions for pregnant

pregnant

adj.