pregnant

¹

[ preg-nuhnt ]

adjective

1. having a child or other offspring developing in the body; with child or young, as a woman or female mammal.
2. fraught, filled, or abounding (usually followed by with ):

   a silence pregnant with suspense.

3. teeming or fertile; rich (often followed by in ):

   a mind pregnant in ideas.

4. full of meaning; highly significant:

   a pregnant utterance.

5. of great importance or potential; momentous:

   a pregnant moment in the history of the world.

pregnant

²

[ preg-nuhnt ]

adjective

, Archaic.

1. convincing; cogent:

   a pregnant argument.

pregnant

/ ˈprɛɡnənt /

adjective

1. carrying a fetus or fetuses within the womb
2. full of meaning or significance
3. inventive or imaginative
4. prolific or fruitful

Derived Forms

• ˈpregnantly, adverb

Other Words From

• pregnant·ly adverb
• pregnant·ness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of pregnant¹

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

Origin of pregnant²

1350–1400; Middle English preignant < Old French, present participle of preindre, earlier priembre to press ¹ < Latin premere. print

Word History and Origins

Origin of pregnant¹

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

Example Sentences

The study found that PM2.5 exposure can influence the histone profiles of pregnant women, disrupting the normal balance of cytokine genes and leading to increased inflammation in both women and fetuses.

From Science Daily

County plans to ramp up services for pregnant women living on the street after the deaths this month of two newborn babies in Skid Row.

From Los Angeles Times

In the process, they are also erasing data needed to save the lives of pregnant women across the board, whether they give birth or not.

From Salon

She said she and her husband, Crispen, had started to look into surrogacy when, unexpectedly, she fell pregnant.

From BBC

While there has been a big jump in the number of single women accessing fertility treatments to become pregnant, the numbers are still relatively small.

From BBC

Related Words

• rich