Primigravida
A primigravida is a woman who is pregnant for the very first time.
• Think of “primi-” as ‘first’ — this term highlights her first experience of carrying a pregnancy, regardless of the outcome.
Multigravida
A multigravida refers to a woman who has been pregnant two or more times.
• The term “multi-” stands for ‘many’, indicating that she has conceived before, whether or not those pregnancies reached viability.
Nulligravida
A nulligravida is a woman who has never been pregnant in her lifetime.
• The prefix “nulli-” means ‘none’ — no pregnancies so far.
Nulliparous
A nulliparous woman has never carried a pregnancy to the age of fetal viability.
• In India, the age of fetal viability is considered ‘28 weeks’ (as in 2025), whereas in many developed countries, it is around ‘24 weeks’.
• She may have been pregnant before, but none of those pregnancies resulted in a viable birth.
Multiparous
A multiparous woman has delivered two or more viable pregnancies, regardless of whether the babies were born alive or stillborn.
• Each pregnancy that reaches viability counts as one “para,” even in cases of twins or triplets —
• It’s the number of pregnancies, not the number of babies, that matters.
Grand Multipara
A grand multipara is a woman who has experienced five or more previous viable pregnancies.
• Such women are at higher obstetric risk due to repeated pregnancies and require special attention during antenatal and intrapartum care.
• The National Health Mission (NHM) Maternal Health Guidelines, India, identify grand multiparity as a high-risk condition.
Parturient
A parturient is a woman who is currently in labor — in other words; she is in the process of giving birth.
Puerperium
The puerperium (or postpartum period) refers to the “six weeks, or approximately 42 days, following childbirth”.
• It’s a time of physical recovery and emotional adjustment, when the mother’s body gradually returns to its pre-pregnant state.
• The Government of India’s Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, Child and Adolescent Health (RMNCH+A) strategy emphasizes postnatal care during this period to prevent maternal morbidity and mortality.
References
1. Dutta DC. Textbook of Obstetrics. 9th ed. New Delhi: Jaypee Brothers Medical Publishers; 2023.
2. Padubidri VG, Daftary SN. Shaw’s Textbook of Gynaecology. 18th ed. New Delhi: Elsevier; 2022.
3. Park K. Park’s Textbook of Preventive and Social Medicine. 28th ed. Jabalpur: Bhanot Publishers; 2025.
4. Babu SA. Clinical Obstetrics and Gynecology. 2nd ed. New Delhi: Wolters Kluwer India Pvt Ltd; 2025.
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