Definition of "midwife" []

• A person, usually a woman, who is trained to assist women in childbirth. Also called regionally granny, granny woman. (noun)
• One who assists in or takes a part in bringing about a result: "In the Renaissance, artists and writers start to serve as midwives of fame” ( Carlin Romano). (noun)
• To assist in the birth of (a baby). (verb-transitive)
• To assist in bringing forth or about: "Washington's efforts to midwife a Mideast settlement” ( Newsweek). (verb-transitive)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "Mr. MO ROCCA (Contributor, "CBS Sunday Morning"): Get your baby delivered by a midwife from the cast of "Star Trek.""
• "After the midwife is bitten by a rattle snake, she asks Dr. Quinn to look after her three children."
• "When I called my midwife, she reassured me and said I should expect contractions to start soon."