primigravida

English edit

WOTD – 15 May 2019

Etymology edit

From Latin prīmus (“first”) (modelled after primipara) + Medieval Latin gravida (“pregnant woman”), feminine singular of Latin gravidus (“pregnant, gravid”),^[1] from gravō (“to burden, weigh down; to make pregnant”) + -idus (“suffix meaning ‘tending to’ forming adjectives”).

Pronunciation edit

(Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˌpɹaɪmɪˈɡɹævɪdə/, /ˌpɹiː-/
Audio (Southern England) (file)
(General American) IPA^(key): /ˌpɹaɪməˈɡɹævɪdə/, /-və-/
Hyphenation: pri‧mi‧gra‧vi‧da

Noun edit

primigravida (plural primigravidas or primigravidae or (archaic) primigravidæ)

(obstetrics, veterinary medicine) A woman or female animal who is pregnant for the first time, or who has been pregnant once. [from late 19th c.]
Synonyms: primigravid, (one sense) primipara

Antonyms: multigravid, multigravida, (one sense) multipara
- 1874 February, “The Conversion of a Facial into a Vertex Presentation by External Manipulation only. By Friedrich Schatz, Rostock. (Archiv für Gynäkologie, v. 2. 1873.)”, in B. F. Dawson, editor, The American Journal of Obstetrics and Diseases of Women and Children, volume VI, number 4, New York, N.Y.: William Wood & Co., publishers, […]; London: John Churchill’s Sons, […], →OCLC, page 659:
  [...] [Friedrich] Schatz advises all pregnant women, especially primigravidæ, to consult a physician during the last portion of their pregnancy, and ascertain from him the position of the child, and the necessity, if present, of altering it before labor sets in.
- 1906 February 12, George Gellhorn, “The Diagnosis of Tubal Pregnancy before Rupture”, in Albert E. Taussig, A. S. Bleyer, editors, Quarterly Bulletin: Medical Department of Washington University, volume IV, number 3, St. Louis, Mo.: [Medical Department of Washington University] office of publication, 1806 Locust Street, […], published March 1906, →OCLC, page 167:
  In connection with the case, I should like to remind you of the fact that extra-uterine pregnancy occurs more frequently in multigravidae than in primigravidae. This has an important bearing on the etiology of ectopic gestation.
- 1975, María-Luisa Urdaneta, “Fertility and the ‘Pill’ in a Texas Barrio”, in Stanley R. Ingman, Anthony E. Thomas, editors, Topias and Utopias in Health: Policy Studies (World Anthropology), The Hague, Paris: Mouton Publishers, →ISBN, page 75:
  The overwhelming majority of primigravidas seen at the clinic are in their middle teens. All but two of these primigravidas were pregnant before their eighteenth birthday. Of thirty-eight primigravidas interviewed none had completed high school; and of these, the ones that were married had husbands who were engaged in low-skill, manual, low-paying occupations.
- 1978, Lance Townsend, “Caesarean Section: The Types of Operation”, in Obstetrics for Students, 3rd edition, Melbourne, Vic., Sydney, N.S.W.: The Macmillan Company of Australia, →DOI, →ISBN, page 566:
  In the second stage [of labour] for a primigravida, Caesarean section is the method of choice; with a multigravida, a vaginal delivery should be attempted.
- 1984, Regina P. Lederman, “Anxiety and Conflict in Pregnancy: Relationship to Maternal Health Status”, in Harriet H[elen] Werley, Joyce J. Fitzpatrick, editors, Annual Review of Nursing Research, volume 2, New York, N.Y.: Springer Publishing Company, →ISBN, →ISSN, →OCLC, part I (Research on Nursing Practice), page 35:
  Primigravidas who find themselves pregnant before they are ready may be more amenable to acceptance if social and financial circumstances are deemed adequate. Multiparas, on the other hand, who feel they have more children than they want may not be abl to overcome feelings of rejection.
- 2009, David Noakes, “The Approach to an Obstetric Case”, in David E. Noakes, Timothy J. Parkinson, Gary C. W. England, editors, Veterinary Reproduction and Obstetrics, 9th edition, Edinburgh, London: Saunders Elsevier, →ISBN, pages 223–224:
  In the primigravida, particularly the heifer and bitch, it is often found that the cause of the dystocia is relatively simple, such as a slight fetomaternal disproportion, and the application of a little assistance is all that is required.
- 2012, Karen M. Schneider, Stephen K. Patrick, “Maternal–Fetal Physiology and Placentation”, in Obstetrics and Gynecology: PreTest™ Self-assessment and Review (PreTest), 13th edition, McGraw-Hill Medical, →ISBN, page 39:
  A 24-year-old primigravida presents for routine ultrasound at 20 weeks gestation. Based on the ultrasound findings, the patient is diagnosed with twin boys.

Derived terms edit

primigravid (adjective and noun)
primigravidity
primigravity

Related terms edit

Translations edit

woman who is pregnant for the first time, or who has been pregnant once

Catalan: primigràvida f
Chinese:
Mandarin: 初孕婦／初孕妇 (chūyùnfù)
German: Primigravida f, erstmals Schwangere f, Erstgebärende f
Latin: primigravida f
Portuguese: primigrávida f, primigesta f
Spanish: primigesta f, primigrávida f
Swedish: förstföderska (sv) c

female animal who is pregnant for the first time, or who has been pregnant once

References edit

^ “primigravida, n.”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, June 2007; “primigravida”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.