Birth and death: from cradle to grave Flashcards
pregnancy
pregnant, to expect a baby
conception
time when sperm and egg meet and a baby starts to form
fertilised
made to start developing into new life
embryo
developing baby
implants
fixes itself
womb/uterus
organ inside the mother where the fertilised egg develops into a baby
conceive
become pregnant
fertility drugs
drugs that help a woman to become pregnant
IVF
in vitro fertilisation = process that fertilises a woman’s egg in a laboratory
test tube babies
babies born via IVF
foetus
what the embryo developing in the uterus is known as from eight weeks onwards
placenta
organ connecting the developing baby to the mother and giving it food
going into labour
going into the last stage of pregnancy, where the womb starts the process of pushing the baby out of the body
be induced
be helped medically to start the process of labour (noun = induction)
give birth
have her baby
midwife
person medically trained to help women when they are giving birth
deliver
help the mother to give birth (noun = delivery)
caesarean section
operation in which the mother’s abdomen and womb are cut open to allow the baby to be removed
ripe old age
living well into old age (to live to a ripe old age)
late
now dead
pensioner
elderly person, receiving an old age pension from the state
sheltered accommodation
special houses, usually for old people, where care staff also live
doddery
weak and unable to walk well, usually because of old age; informal
gaga
unable to think clearly because of old age; informal and offensive
have all her wits about her
is still able to think and react quickly
dementia
an illness that causes problemswith memory loss
coffin
box where the dead person is put
wake
gathering of family and friends after a funeral
will
legal document saying what is to hapen to your possessions after your death
ashes
remains of a body after cremation
mourning
expressing sadness after someone’s death (
bereaved
be deprived of a close relation or friend through their death
cremation
service where a dead body is burnt
crematorium
place where the cremation happens
burial
the body is buried in the ground
scattered
spread around
please accept my condolences
expression of sympathy (formal)
I was so sorry to learn/hear of your loss
expression of sympathy (informal)
to pass away/on/over
euphemisms for ‘to die’
to be at death’s door
very informal expression for being close to death
to be on your last legs
very informal expression for being close to death (often used about machines)
fatalities
newspaper word for dead people
perished
newspaper word for died
slaughtered
newspaper word for violently killed
the deceased
legal word for dead person
to bequeath
legal word to leave something in a will (a bequest)
to inherit
legal word to receive something for someone who has died (an inheritance)
to die intestate
legal word for dying without having made a will
