# Pregnancy terminology: "I'm/she's pregnant" or "we're pregnant"? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 29, 2012, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pregnancy-terminology-im-shes-pregnant-or-were-pregnant/633084 "2012-08-29T23:35:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Sahirrnee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sahirrnee/32/13937_2.png) [@Sahirrnee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sahirrnee)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2012, 1:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pregnancy-terminology-im-shes-pregnant-or-were-pregnant/633084/21 "2012-08-30T13:15:51Z")
“We’re pregnant” is annoying but not as bad as “we’re trying to get pregnant” which conjures up images of the couple fucking like rabbits. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2012, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pregnancy-terminology-im-shes-pregnant-or-were-pregnant/633084/22 "2012-08-31T15:33:34Z")
> [@sahirrnee](#): > > “We’re pregnant” is annoying but not as bad as “we’re trying to get pregnant” which conjures up images of the couple fucking like rabbits. I can’t get behind saying “We’re pregnant,” but “we’re trying to get pregnant” strikes me as accurate, as both parties are necessary and presumably they’re doing exactly what you mention. ---
**Author:** ![Sahirrnee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sahirrnee/32/13937_2.png) [@Sahirrnee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sahirrnee)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2012, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pregnancy-terminology-im-shes-pregnant-or-were-pregnant/633084/23 "2012-08-31T16:14:29Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > I can’t get behind saying “We’re pregnant,” but “we’re trying to get pregnant” strikes me as accurate, as both parties are necessary and presumably they’re doing exactly what you mention. For me it’s just TMI ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2012, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pregnancy-terminology-im-shes-pregnant-or-were-pregnant/633084/24 "2012-08-31T16:25:22Z")
> [@sahirrnee](#): > > For me it’s just TMI No, too much information would be “In an attempt to conceive, we are forgoing all coitus and even masturbation except during Megan’s time of ovulation (thus ensuring that Samuel has the maximum volume of semen and thus quantity of sperm available for each attempt); furthermore, we are both taking vacation time during the ovulation periods, and during those days all we do is fuck, eat, sleep, and shower (and during the latter we also fuck). Also, after a fucking episode, Megan remains on her back with her legs in the air for at least a quarter hour. Also, Samuel is eating certain herbs…” ---
**Author:** ![Blaster\_Master](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/cab0a1/32.png) [@Blaster\_Master](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blaster_Master)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2012, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pregnancy-terminology-im-shes-pregnant-or-were-pregnant/633084/25 "2012-08-31T16:33:20Z")
Straight Male, “She’s pregnant”. The “We’re pregnant” thing, coming from a guy, bothers me because it’s a state that a guy just can’t achieve. I get the idea that a guy would want to indicate his connection to the child, but that’s where I think the better way to say it would be “We’re having a baby” or something to that effect. It bothers me a little less if a woman were to say it, probably because she would actually be pregnant, but still strikes me as odd. ---
**Author:** ![Gagundathar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a183cd/32.png) [@Gagundathar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gagundathar)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2012, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pregnancy-terminology-im-shes-pregnant-or-were-pregnant/633084/26 "2012-08-31T16:39:35Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > No, too much information would be “In an attempt to conceive, we are forgoing all coitus and even masturbation except during Megan’s time of ovulation (thus ensuring that Samuel has the maximum volume of semen and thus quantity of sperm available for each attempt); furthermore, we are both taking vacation time during the ovulation periods, and during those days all we do is fuck, eat, sleep, and shower (and during the latter we also fuck). Also, after a fucking episode, Megan remains on her back with her legs in the air for at least a quarter hour. Also, Samuel is eating certain herbs…” Fortunately, I (as I have mentioned before on this illustrious forum) work in a sound-proofed loft. Otherwise, the inhabitants of the nearby owlery would have been hooting along with me. Well done, sir. \ ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2012, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pregnancy-terminology-im-shes-pregnant-or-were-pregnant/633084/27 "2012-08-31T17:30:37Z")
I don’t have a problem with either one–both work in different contexts. The one that doesn’t work is I (the male) am pregnant. That’s just stupid. Though, because so many people do have a problem with “We’re pregnant”, I’d generally say “We’re having a baby,” which, although it means the same thing, is less likely to be unacceptable. ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2012, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pregnancy-terminology-im-shes-pregnant-or-were-pregnant/633084/28 "2012-08-31T17:47:11Z")
I can’t imagine how pissy I’d have to be to be annoyed by someone saying “we’re pregnant.” ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2012, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pregnancy-terminology-im-shes-pregnant-or-were-pregnant/633084/29 "2012-08-31T19:33:26Z")
Not annoy **ed** but it’s annoy **ing**. Just grates on my ear, that’s all. ---
**Author:** ![Arrendajo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Arrendajo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arrendajo)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2012, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pregnancy-terminology-im-shes-pregnant-or-were-pregnant/633084/30 "2012-08-31T19:49:53Z")
For me, it’s not the phrase so much that irritates me as the kind of couples I hear saying it. They are often a grab-bag of new-agey attitudes and touchy-feely sentiment. It’s always present tense, too. I never hear a guy say “When my wife and I were pregnant…” And what ever happened to “with child?” “My consort is with child.” You never hear a guy say that any more. But that’s a topic for another thread. ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2012, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pregnancy-terminology-im-shes-pregnant-or-were-pregnant/633084/31 "2012-09-01T00:00:33Z")
> [@Inner\_Stickler](#): > > I can’t imagine how pissy I’d have to be to be annoyed by someone saying “we’re pregnant.” Well , I wouldn’t be _annoyed_ by it -unless my husband was the person who said “we’re pregnant” . No ,“we’re” not pregnant, not unless “we’re” having the c-section at the end of it. And if “we” had the c-section, why the hell were you able to walk and allowed to eat? ---
**Author:** ![Jragon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19b73/32.png) [@Jragon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jragon)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2012, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pregnancy-terminology-im-shes-pregnant-or-were-pregnant/633084/32 "2012-09-01T00:07:44Z")
> [@Blaster\_Master](#): > > It bothers me a little less if a woman were to say it, probably because she would actually be pregnant, but still strikes me as odd. It wouldn’t bother me at ALL if a queen were to say it :D. ---
**Author:** ![gracer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8e7dd6/32.png) [@gracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gracer)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2012, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pregnancy-terminology-im-shes-pregnant-or-were-pregnant/633084/33 "2012-09-01T00:13:14Z")
Yeah, not so much _annoyed_ as just… incapacitated from laughter. I’m trying to imagine my sister and her SO announcing “we’re pregnant”. I would not be able to congratulate them. I would be on the floor laughing, picturing 6ft, hairy Vince with a baby bump. ---
**Author:** ![Rhiannon8404](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rhiannon8404/32/17929_2.png) [@Rhiannon8404](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhiannon8404)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2012, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pregnancy-terminology-im-shes-pregnant-or-were-pregnant/633084/34 "2012-09-01T00:47:58Z")
Straight female: I was pregnant. **Suburban Plankton** was not pregnant. Therefore _we_ were not pregnant. It’s all I can do not to slap people who say “we are pregnant” unless it’s two pregnant women. ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2012, 7:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pregnancy-terminology-im-shes-pregnant-or-were-pregnant/633084/35 "2012-09-01T07:53:36Z")
I’m pregnant. We’re expecting. ---
**Author:** ![overlyverbose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/9dc877/32.png) [@overlyverbose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/overlyverbose)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2012, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pregnancy-terminology-im-shes-pregnant-or-were-pregnant/633084/36 "2012-09-01T13:43:31Z")
> [@Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](#): > > I’m/She’s pregnant. > > “We” can be expecting a baby, but (unless it’s a lesbian couple who have both concieved, which is kind of a cool idea) only one of them is actually pregnant. This is exactly how I feel. I detest people who say “we’re pregnant.” The likelihood of that being accurate is very low. ---
**Author:** ![Small\_Hen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ad7895/32.png) [@Small\_Hen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Small_Hen)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2012, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pregnancy-terminology-im-shes-pregnant-or-were-pregnant/633084/37 "2012-09-01T14:00:41Z")
I’m a bisexual female, but I voted under straight. “I/she’s” pregnant is what I would say, and what everyone should say, IMO. Women who say, “We’re pregnant” annoy me. Men who say it actually creep me out a little bit. ---
**Author:** ![handsomeharry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9c0ed/32.png) [@handsomeharry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handsomeharry)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2012, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pregnancy-terminology-im-shes-pregnant-or-were-pregnant/633084/38 "2012-09-01T15:47:03Z")
“We are dilating” doesn’t sound right, so, “We’re pregnant” doesn’t either. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2012, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pregnancy-terminology-im-shes-pregnant-or-were-pregnant/633084/39 "2012-09-01T16:19:44Z")
If a woman said “We’re pregnant”, and she’s not HRH or HM, then I’d assume that both she and her female partner were pregnant. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2012, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pregnancy-terminology-im-shes-pregnant-or-were-pregnant/633084/40 "2012-09-02T23:39:57Z")
The only people on the planet who can see “_we’re pregnant_” and not sound stupid are Abigail & Brittany Hensel. Also Queen Elizabeth II could get away with it when she was younger. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pregnancy-terminology-im-shes-pregnant-or-were-pregnant/633084.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pregnancy-terminology-im-shes-pregnant-or-were-pregnant/633084.md?page=3)