prenatal

Etymology

It is formed from English pre- (“before”) + natal.^{[2][3][4][5][6][7]} The adjective natal is from Latin nātālis (“of or belonging to birth”), from nāscor (“to be born”).^[3][2] The OED compares the earlier antenatal,^[2] and Klein postnatal.^[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

Occurring or existing before birth: 1826, in Robert Southey's Vindiciæ Ecclesiæ Anglicanæ.^[2][4][3][5]

Semantic evolution

In 1914 an American newspaper used it for what concerns the health of women during pregnancy,^[2] the sense of prenatal care and prenatal clinic.^[5][2] Collins also records an informal noun, a prenatal examination.^[8] The adverb prenatally is recorded from the late 19th century.^[7]

Timeline

• 1826 – occurring or existing before birth.^[2][4][5]
• 1914 – concerned with the health of women during pregnancy.^[2]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Happening or existing before birth; during pregnancy: prenatal development of the brain.^[8][5][2]
2. Giving or receiving medical care during pregnancy; antenatal: She booked her first prenatal appointment.^[5][2]

Noun

1. (informal) A prenatal examination.^[8]

Word family

• prenatally

Related words

• natal
• antenatal
• postnatal
• nascent

Usage notes

Collins gives antenatal as another name for the same thing,^[8] and the OED and the Shorter Oxford define prenatal by reference to antenatal, which is recorded earlier.^[2][7]

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ a b c Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
5. ^ a b c d e f Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
6. ^ a b Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
7. ^ a b c Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
8. ^ a b c d Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins