birth

[ burth ]

noun

1. an act or instance of being born:

   the day of his birth.

2. the act or process of bearing or bringing forth offspring; childbirth; parturition:

   a difficult birth.

3. lineage; extraction; descent:

   of Grecian birth.

   Synonyms: family, blood, line, ancestry, parentage

4. high or noble lineage:

   to be foolishly vain about one's birth.

5. natural heritage:

   a musician by birth.

6. any coming into existence; origin; beginning:

   the birth of Protestantism; the birth of an idea.

   Synonyms: inauguration, genesis, inception, commencement, start

7. Archaic. something that is born.

verb (used with object)

, Chiefly South Midland and Southern U.S.

1. to give birth to.
2. to assist in giving birth; act as midwife for.

birth

/ bɜːθ /

noun

1. the process of bearing young; parturition; childbirth natal
2. the act or fact of being born; nativity
3. the coming into existence of something; origin
4. ancestry; lineage

   of high birth

5. noble ancestry

   a man of birth

6. natural or inherited talent

   an artist by birth

7. archaic.
   the offspring or young born at a particular time or of a particular mother
8. give birth
   1. to bear (offspring)
   2. to produce, originate, or create (an idea, plan, etc)

verb

1. to bear or bring forth (a child)

birth

/ bûrth /

Noun

1. The emergence and separation of offspring from the body of its mother, seen in all mammals except monotremes.

Adjective

1. Present at birth, as a defect in a bodily structure.

Other Words From

• multi·birth noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of birth¹

First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English byrthe, from Scandinavian; compare Old Swedish byrth; cognate with Old English gebyrd, Old High German giburt, Gothic gabaurths; bear ¹( def ), -th ¹( def )

Word History and Origins

Origin of birth¹

C12: from Old Norse byrth ; related to Gothic gabaurths , Old Swedish byrdh , Old High German berd child; see bear ¹, bairn

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. give birth to,
   1. to bear (a child).
   2. to initiate; originate:

      Her hobby gave birth to a successful business.

More idioms and phrases containing birth

see give birth to .

Example Sentences

They and the physician plaintiffs seek to establish that Idaho’s law allows an abortion whenever a patient has a physical medical condition or complication that makes it unsafe to continue a pregnancy, has a condition exacerbated by pregnancy that can’t otherwise be easily treated, or is told about a fetal condition that is likely to be fatal after birth.

From Slate

Folic acid is to be added to non-wholemeal wheat flour in the UK to help prevent birth defects.

From BBC

The authority said, alongside the cost concerns, it believed falling birth rates across Suffolk and nationally meant there could be too few students attending in the future, potentially making a new school "financially unsustainable."

From BBC

After the birth of her son, the first three months were brilliant, her family say.

From BBC

As the South African-born billionaire is not a US citizen by birth, he cannot become president - something that has frustrated other famous faces who became involved in politics in the past.

From BBC

Related Words

• dawn
• emergence
• opening
• origin