Main Entry:

preg·nant

Pronunciation:

\ˈpreg-nənt\

Function:

adjective

Etymology:

Middle English, from Latin praegnant-, praegnans carrying a fetus, alteration of praegnas, from prae- pre- + -gnas (akin to gignere to give birth to) — more at kin

Date:

14th century

1archaic : cogent2: abounding in fancy, wit, or resourcefulness : inventive <all this has been said…by great and pregnant artists — Times Literary Supplement>3: rich in significance or implication : meaningful, profound <the pregnant phrases of the Bible — Edmund Wilson> <a pregnant pause>4: containing a developing embryo, fetus, or unborn offspring within the body : gravid5: having possibilities of development or consequence : involving important issues : momentous <draw inspiration from the heroic achievements of that pregnant age — Kemp Malone>6obsolete : inclined, disposed <your own most pregnant and vouchsafed ear — Shakespeare>7: full, teeming

— preg·nant·ly adverb