fe·tal | \ ˈfē-tᵊl 
\
\Definition of fetal
: of, relating to, or being a fetus
Examples of fetal in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web Terminations after about 24 weeks of pregnancy are generally only legally allowed to happen in cases of severe fetal abnormalities, such as when the fetus is no longer viable, or to save the life of the patient.
—
Kate Smith, CBS News, "Abortion on the ballot in Colorado and Louisiana," 3 Nov. 2020 Once the ostensibly pro-life president receives experimental treatment — tested on cells derived from fetal tissue — for the disease, reality and absurdity merge, severely squeezing the space for satire.
—
Michael Bennett, Washington Post, "How do you write satire in the age of bleach injections? It isn’t easy, but it’s necessary.," 17 Oct. 2020 In June 2019, the Trump administration suspended federal funding for most new scientific research involving fetal tissue derived from abortions.
—
Chronicle Staff, SFChronicle.com, "Coronavirus news from the Bay Area: Oct. 2-8," 16 Oct. 2020 The law also prohibited the donation of fetal tissue from abortions to medical researchers.
—
Alex Briseno, Dallas News, "Appeal expected after federal court strikes Texas’ ban on common abortion procedure," 14 Oct. 2020 The statute effectively outlawed the dilation and evacuation procedure, known as D&E, in which doctors open the cervix and remove fetal tissue from the uterus.
—
Kaylee Poche, NOLA.com, "Fifth Circuit Court knocks down Texas abortion ban," 13 Oct. 2020 That artery typically goes away during fetal development, or even during infancy.
—
Caroline Delbert, Popular Mechanics, "An Oddity in Your Forearm Proves Humans Aren't Done Evolving Yet," 12 Oct. 2020 That’s a problem because these issues have been found to negatively affect fetal development.
—
refinery29.com, "Fertility Diary: I’m In My 20s & My Partner & I Both Struggle With Fertility," 31 Aug. 2020 Kathleen Marie Schmainda is a biophysicist at the Medical College of Wisconsin and an opponent of human fetal tissue research.
—
Meredith Wadman, Science | AAAS, "Antiabortion ethicists and scientists dominate Trump’s fetal tissue review board," 31 July 2020
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'fetal.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Keep scrolling for more
Keep scrolling for more
More Definitions for fetal
fetal
adjectiveEnglish Language Learners Definition of fetal
: of or relating to a developing animal or human being that is not yet born : of or relating to a fetus
See the full definition for fetal in the English Language Learners Dictionary
fetal
adjectivefe·tal
variants:
or chiefly British foetal \ ˈfēt-ᵊl \
\Medical Definition of fetal
: of, relating to, or being a fetus
Comments on fetal
What made you want to look up fetal? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).
Test Your Vocabulary
Musical Words Quiz
- Which word describes a musical performance marked by the absence of instrumental accompaniment?
Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?
TAKE THE QUIZ
Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.
TAKE THE QUIZLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridgedWords at Play
Ask the Editors
Share fetal
Time Traveler for fetal
The first known use of fetal was in 1811
See more words from the same year