childbirth

noun

ˈchī(-ə)l(d)-ˌbərth How to pronounce childbirth (audio)
Definition of childbirthnext
as in pregnancy
the act or process of giving birth to children women who choose to undergo childbirth without the use of anesthetics and other drugs

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of childbirth Pelvic floor disorders happen when those muscles or tissues weaken or get injured, often through childbirth, obesity, age or genetics, the FDA says. — Samantha Agate, Miami Herald, 15 Sep. 2026 The trial generated intense interest for weeks, drawing attention to maternal mental health after childbirth. — Leah Willingham, Los Angeles Times, 10 Sep. 2026 There are also certain risk periods, like pregnancy, where women are more prone to anemia, and childbirth, where emergencies may necessitate a blood transfusion, Lawrence said. — Norah O'Donnell, CBS News, 9 Sep. 2026 Takaichi’s government has focused on reducing the cost of childbirth, by aiming to eliminate out-of-pocket costs for standard childbirth, although the policy has not yet gone into effect. — Marco Quiroz-Gutierrez, Fortune, 3 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for childbirth
Recent Examples of Synonyms for childbirth
  1. pregnancy
  2. childbearing
  3. delivery
  4. labor
  5. pains
  6. parturition
  7. contraction
Noun
  • Literature states that the recurrence rate after one pregnancy is affected by anencephaly jumps dramatically to between 2%-5%.
    — Armando Salguero OutKick, FOXNews.com, 30 Sep. 2026
  • The fourth season’s penultimate episode features a pregnancy revelation, the unmasking of a secret villain, and, in its final moments, an unexpected loss that lends an extra layer of poignancy to the episode’s title.
    — Keith Phipps, Vulture, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of pregnancy
Noun
  • But Steinem lived to see the rise of a powerful backlash against her vision of feminism, with reproductive rights, motherhood, childbearing and gender roles once again at the center of the country's culture wars.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 3 Sep. 2026
  • Not least because the hips—or rather, a wide pelvis—are considered a symbol of femininity, fertility, and childbearing capacity, both from a cultural-historical and an evolutionary-biology perspective.
    — Kelly Niesen, Glamour, 24 July 2026
Definition of childbearing
Noun
  • Russia’s Avangard is another example, using an intercontinental ballistic missile to deliver a strategic glide vehicle designed for nuclear delivery.
    — Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 27 Sep. 2026
  • This project, called Kilby, is expected to see its first power delivery in 2028 and generate mid-teens returns and long-term cash flows.
    — TipRanks Staff, CNBC, 27 Sep. 2026
Definition of delivery
Noun
  • To close deals, some US homebuilders are resorting to price cuts and mortgage rate buy downs to attract buyers, squeezing profit margins that are already compressed by high raw material, labor, and financing expenses.
    — , CNBC, 29 Sep. 2026
  • Ownership is bringing an institutional balance sheet to a labor fight.
    — Chris Koras, Sportico.com, 28 Sep. 2026
Definition of labor
Noun
  • With exceptional performances from the entire cast and homages to musical legends like Whitney Houston and Janet Jackson, Bioh and White present a reflection of the Black female experience in all of its dazzling idiosyncrasies, triumphs and pains.
    — Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 29 Sep. 2026
  • Some people spend hundreds on first-class upgrades to feel better, but a pair of lightweight compression socks can prevent a lot of the pains that come with long travel days—even if you’re stuck in economy.
    — Olivia Young, Travel + Leisure, 27 Sep. 2026
Definition of pains
Noun
  • This pattern spans over a decade, indicating a remarkable fidelity to the Ashburton River and its surrounding creeks as critical parturition sites.
    — Melissa Cristina Marquez, Forbes, 1 Oct. 2024
  • His mother paced the spacious birthing stall, working off the pains of parturition, with half the placenta, neatly tied up by an attending stable hand, still hanging out of her.
    — William Finnegan, The New Yorker, 15 May 2021
Definition of parturition
Noun
  • When a sensor detected movement in a rat’s front paw, another device was automatically activated to stimulate a hind-leg muscle, producing a contraction that mimicked part of the animal’s natural walking motion.
    — Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 25 Sep. 2026
  • The duo also translate the musical signals being emitted by the cosmic rift, realizing that a giant space baby is about to be born, and that the energy bursts bombarding both Enterprises are effectively contractions.
    — Richard Edwards, Space.com, 24 Sep. 2026
Definition of contraction

Browse Nearby Words

childbeds
childbirth
childbirths
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Childbirth.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/childbirth. Accessed 3 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on childbirth

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about childbirth

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of tittle

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Words of the Week - Oct. 2

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
name tags
Words Named After People Quiz Find out who’s behind "leotard," "morphine," an...
See All