Can a husband be expecting?

Question

It's common to say that a pregnant woman is expecting, but is it acceptable to say that her husband is expecting? I ask because my male teacher's wife is expecting in a week.

In case you didn't know, to be expecting means (for a pregnant woman, at least) that one will be giving birth soon, but it could generalize to males as meaning "will have a new child soon."

Despite what @Edwin correctly notes, if it was clear you were talking about a man people would understand you were using figurative language, so long as the rest of your language use was competent. — Robusto, Sep 08 '15 at 21:51
... To be fair, I've heard the broadening 'We're expecting'. But I'd consider a father-to-be's use of 'I'm expecting' to be wry, self-centred, or weird. — Edwin Ashworth, Sep 08 '15 at 21:57
Could be valid, if the father-to-be realizes that he should expect sleepless nights, constant worry, enormous college tuition bills, and eventual disappointment in conjunction with the likely disgrace of his family name. — deadrat, Sep 08 '15 at 22:08
I agree with @EdwinAshworth. I think it's perfectly fine to say a mother or couple is expecting, eg. "They are expecting their third child in the spring." "She is expecting a new baby any day now." But not the daddy. I am already a bit creeped out by "We're trying to get pregnant." I guess it avoids saying in polite company, "I'm trying to get my wife pregnant." — Chellspecker, Sep 08 '15 at 22:10
The term "expecting" is increasingly applied to the husband/father, though it has not quite passed over into "common" usage yet. — Hot Licks, Oct 09 '15 at 11:21
I've seen the phrase pregnant mothers and expectant fathers, which makes good sense in that context. — Lawrence, Nov 08 '15 at 12:34
Possible duplicate of "expecting a baby" Maybe it's the case that these two questions, closely related but not identical, could be merged. — Mari-Lou A, Nov 08 '15 at 13:05
Also related:A way of describing the lesbian parent that is not pregnant? — Mari-Lou A, Nov 08 '15 at 13:16

score 1 · Answer 1 · edited Jun 15 '20 at 07:40

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The idiom for this is: expectant father. However, if you were to say your teacher was expecting most people would assume the teacher to be female and pregnant. Context is key here.

An expectant mother/father/parent is someone whose child has not yet been born.

Cambridge

edited Jun 15 '20 at 07:40

Community

1

answered Sep 08 '15 at 21:57

candied_orange

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So Id have to say that his wife is pregnant. Thanks! – Faraz Masroor Sep 08 '15 at 22:18
Some clue as to gender is all that's needed. And even then only to sate curiosity. People eventually get curious about the gender for any character you describe. – candied_orange Sep 08 '15 at 22:25
@FarazMasroor The following terms are also used: Father-to-be, and the more colloquial, Dad-to-be. Otherwise, I'd just say "my teacher is going to be a dad/father soon" No confusion there. – Mari-Lou A Nov 08 '15 at 13:36

Can a husband be expecting?

1 Answers1