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birth definition

birth (bʉrt̸h)

noun

  1. the act of bringing forth offspring
  2. the act or fact of coming into life, or of being born; nativity
  3. origin or natal background a Spaniard by birth
  4. good or noble lineage a man of birth
  5. the beginning of anything the birth of a nation
  6. an inherited or natural inclination or talent an actress by birth

Etymology: ME birthe, burthe < ON byrth, akin to OE gebyrde, byrde, Goth gabaurths < IE *bhrto, pp. of base *bher-, bear

intransitive verb, transitive verb

to give birth (to)

adjective

relating or related biologically rather than by adoption; natural: often used in combination birth mother, birthparent
birth Idioms

give birth

to bring forth offspring

give birth to

  1. to bring forth (offspring)
  2. to be the cause or origin of; originate; create

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Alternate definitions:

idioms birth idiom

medical birth definition - medical

birth Synonyms

birth

n.

  1. The coming into life

    delivery, childbirth, parturition, nativity, beginning, blessed event*, visit from the stork*, act of God*; see also childbirth.

    Antonyms death*, decease*, demise. *

  2. The origin

    commencement, source, start; see origin 1, 2, 3.

  3. One's origin or natal background

    background, lineage, extraction, descent; see family 1, rank 3.

give birth to

bring forth, have a child, bear a child, deliver; see produceproduce

1.

Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

birth Usage Examples

Preposition: of

  • baby: For example moving house, leaving home, getting a new job or retiring, the birth of a baby.

Converse of object

  • give: On 6 June 1958, she gave birth to her fourth child - a son, Arthur Ronald Conway Hubbard.

Adjective modifier

  • virgin: Due to the virgin birth Jesus Christ was exempted from the curse of Adam with which we have all been imputed.

Modifies a noun

  • defect: The urge to write is like a congenital birth defect.

Noun used with modifier

  • preterm: There is diverse opinion and a lack of consensus about management of preterm birth due to the lack of clinical and scientific data.
birth usage examples (more)

The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.

birth quotes

   He spoke, and loosed our heart in tears. He laid us as we lay at birth 31 On the cool flowery lap of earth.

-Arnold, Matthew

They give birth astride of a grave, the light gleams an instant, then it's night once more.

-Beckett, Samuel

The function of the artist is to disturb. His duty is to arousethesleeper, toshakethe complacent pillars ofthe world.He reminds the world of its dark ancestry, and shows the world its present, and points the way to its new birth.He isat oncetheproduct and thepreceptorof his time.

-Bethune, Norman

birth quotes (more)

Webster's New World Dictionary of Quotations Copyright © 2005 by Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. Published by Wiley, Hoboken, NJ. Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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"birth." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009

  • Your Dictionary. 5 July 2009
  • <www.yourdictionary.com/birth>

APA Style

birth. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary

  • Retrieved July 5th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/birth

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