Origin: Latin prefix pre-
Pregnant has 6 different meanings across 1 category:
A pregnant person.
"Sarah is going to be a mother because she is currently pregnant."
In plain English: A pregnant person is someone who is carrying and growing a baby inside their body.
"The pregnant pause in the room made everyone nervous."
Usage: Use "pregnant" only as an adjective to describe someone carrying a fetus; it is grammatically incorrect to use the word itself as a noun to refer to that person. Instead, say things like "a pregnant woman" or "a pregnant person."
carrying developing offspring within the body or being about to produce new life
"After taking her second pregnancy test, she finally told her husband that they were expecting a baby."
rich in significance or implication
"a meaning look"
"a significant silence"
Carrying developing offspring within the body.
"The evidence was so pregnant of truth that no reasonable doubt could remain about his guilt."
Compelling; clear, evident.
In plain English: Pregnant means a woman is carrying a baby growing inside her body.
"She is pregnant with her first child."
Usage: While pregnant usually describes a woman carrying a child, it can also mean that something is full of meaning or significance. Use this secondary sense when describing a silence that speaks volumes or a look that clearly shows deep emotion.
The word entered Middle English from the Old French preignant and Latin praegnans, which combined a prefix meaning "before" with an archaic root for "to be born." This term replaced the native Old English phrase bearnēacen, literally meaning "child-enlarged," to describe a woman carrying offspring.