Definition

1. Verb:

   • To be pregnant / to carry a child: The primary meaning refers to the physiological state of a woman or female mammal carrying a developing embryo or fetus within the body.
   • To conceive / to be in gestation: This meaning extends to the process of forming and developing an idea, plan, or creative work, treating it metaphorically as a pregnancy.

2. Adjective:

   • Pregnant / Expectant: Describing the state of carrying a child.
   • In gestation / In development: Describing an idea or project that is being carefully formed and nurtured before being revealed or completed.

Usage Examples

• Verb (Physiological):
  • Cô ấy đang thai nghén đứa con đầu lòng. (She is pregnant with her first child.)
• Verb (Figurative):
  • Nhà văn đã thai nghén ý tưởng cho cuốn tiểu thuyết trong nhiều năm. (The writer conceived the idea for the novel over many years.)
• Adjective:
  • Đây là một dự án đang thai nghén. (This is a project in gestation.)

Advanced Usage

• The term is often used in formal, literary, or medical contexts. In everyday speech for the physiological state, "mang thai" or "có bầu" are more common.
• The figurative use is highly valued in artistic and intellectual descriptions, emphasizing the careful, internal, and creative process.

Variants and Related Words

• Mang thai (v): to be pregnant (more common, neutral).
• Thai kỳ (n): pregnancy, gestation period.
• Sự thai nghén (n): the act or process of conceiving (both literal and figurative).

Synonyms

• Pregnant: carrying a child.
• Expectant: awaiting the birth of a child.
• In gestation: in the process of development.
• Conceiving: forming an idea or becoming pregnant.

Related Idioms

• Thai nghén tác phẩm: To be developing a work (of art, literature). This is a direct and common application of the figurative meaning.
  • Họa sĩ đang âm thầm thai nghén tác phẩm để chuẩn bị cho triển lãm. (The painter is quietly developing his work in preparation for the exhibition.)

adj

1. with child, pregnant conceiving, in gestation of