01 n. The act or fact of coming into life, or of being born; -- generally applied to human beings; as, the birth of a son.
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1.
The act or fact of coming into life, or of being born; -- generally applied to human beings; as, the birth of a son.
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2.
Lineage; extraction; descent; sometimes, high birth; noble extraction.“Elected without reference to birth, but solely for qualifications.” — Prescott.
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3.
The condition to which a person is born; natural state or position; inherited disposition or tendency.“A foe by birth to Troy's unhappy name.” — Dryden.
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4.
The act of bringing forth; as, she had two children at a birth.
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5.
That which is born; that which is produced, whether animal or vegetable.“Poets are far rarer births than kings.” — B. Jonson.“Others hatch their eggs and tend the birth till it is able to shift for itself.” — Addison.
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6.
Origin; beginning; as, the birth of an empire.
Phrases & compounds
New birth —
regeneration, or the commencement of a religious life.
Syn.
Parentage; extraction; lineage; race; family.