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midwife definition

mid·wife (mid′wīf′)

noun pl. midwives -·wives′ (-wīvz′)

a person (now, esp., a specially trained nurse) whose work is helping women in childbirth

Etymology: ME midwyf < mid, with < OE (< Gmc mithi < IE *meti- < base *me- > mid, Ger mit, Gr meta) + wif, woman (see wife): basic sense “woman with, woman assisting”

transitive verb midwifed -·wifed′ or midwived -·wived′, midwifing -·wif′·ing or midwiving -·wiv′·ing

  1. to assist as a midwife in the birth of (a child)
  2. to help bring about or bring into being to midwife a resolution to a conflict

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

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