Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

midwife

/ˈmɪd.waɪf/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.27 in modern English

Syllables
mid-wife
IPA
/ˈmɪd.waɪf/
16
Scrabble Score
7
Letters
2
Syllables
6
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A person, usually a woman, who is trained to assist women in childbirth, but who is not a physician.

verb

To act as a midwife.

Transitive verb

verb

To facilitate the emergence of.

Transitive verb

Example Sentences

Etymology

From Middle English midwif, corresponding to mid (“with”) + wif (“woman, wife, female”). It appears not to be entirely clear whether the original understanding was “with-woman” in the sense of “attending/assisting woman”, or “they who are with the woman” (namely the mother).

Origin

Word Breakdown

Usage

Inflected Forms

Derived Forms

Phrases

Frequently Paired Words

Synonyms

Questions

How do you pronounce midwife?
The recorded pronunciation is /ˈmɪd.waɪf/.
What does midwife mean?
A person, usually a woman, who is trained to assist women in childbirth, but who is not a physician.
Where does midwife come from?
It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce midwife

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “midwife”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈmɪd.waɪf/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “midwife”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “midwife” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.