[syn: motherliness, maternalism, maternal quality, maternity]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:
Maternity \Ma*ter"ni*ty\, n. [F. maternit['e], LL. maternitas.]
1. The state of being a mother; motherhood.
[1913 Webster]
2. The character of a mother; maternal quality; motherliness.
[1913 Webster]
3. The maternity ward; the maternity department of a
hospital.
[PJC]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:
maternity \ma*ter"ni*ty\, a.
1. Of or pertaining to childbirth or the period during which
a woman is pregnant; as, maternity care; a maternity
hospital.
[PJC]
2. For use during pregnancy; as, a maternity outfit.
[PJC]
WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):
maternity
n 1: the state of being pregnant; the period from conception to
birth when a woman carries a developing fetus in her uterus
[syn: pregnancy, gestation, maternity]
2: the kinship relation between an offspring and the mother
[syn: motherhood, maternity]
3: the quality of having or showing the tenderness and warmth
and affection of or befitting a mother; "the girl's
motherliness made her invaluable in caring for the children"
[syn: motherliness, maternalism, maternal quality,
maternity]
Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0:
43 Moby Thesaurus words for "maternity":
affiliation, agnation, alliance, ancestry, blood,
blood relationship, brotherhood, brothership, cognation,
common ancestry, common descent, connection, consanguinity,
cousinhood, cousinship, enation, fatherhood, filiation, fraternity,
kindred, kinship, maternalness, matrilineage, matriliny, matrisib,
matrocliny, motherhood, motherliness, mothership, parenthood,
paternity, patrilineage, patriliny, patrisib, patrocliny,
pregnancy, propinquity, relation, relationship, sibship,
sisterhood, sistership, ties of blood