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birth

Pronunciation: /bəːθ/

Translate birth | into French | into German | into Italian | into Spanish
Definition of birth

noun

[mass noun]
  • the emergence of a baby or other young from the body of its mother; the start of life as a physically separate being:he was blind from birth [count noun]:despite a difficult birth he’s fit and healthy
  • the beginning or coming into existence of something:the birth of Socialist Realism
  • a person’s origin, descent, or ancestry:the mother is English by birth he is of noble birth

verb

[with object] chiefly North American
  • give birth to (a baby or other young):she birthed five children within ten years

Phrases

give birth

bear a child or young:she gave birth to a son

Origin:

Middle English: from Old Norse byrth; related to bear1

Do not confuse birth with berth. Birth means 'the emergence of a baby from the womb' (he weighed six pounds at birth), while berth means 'a place in a harbour for a ship,' or 'a bunk in a ship or other means of transport' (a four-berth caravan).

birth in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of birth in the US English dictionary

Nearby words

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