drachtige

Drachtige is a Dutch adjective meaning pregnant or carrying offspring. The term is most commonly used in agricultural and veterinary contexts to describe animals that are in gestation, such as dairy cows (koe), mares (merrie), or ewes. In everyday Dutch describing humans, the more common term is zwanger; drachtig can be understood but is less frequent and may sound formal or literary.

The noun form related to this concept is dracht, meaning pregnancy or gestation, and drachtigheid refers to the state of being pregnant. The adjective drachtig has the base form used before nouns; in attributive position the usual form is drachtige, as in 'een drachtige koe' or 'de drachtige merrie'. In plural contexts you would say 'drachtige dieren' or specify the species.

Etymology: dracht comes from Old Dutch and Proto-Germanic roots relating to carrying or bearing, and drachtig developed to describe the state of carrying offspring. Drachtigheid is the abstract noun for pregnancy.

In veterinary and farming literature, 'drachtige' is a standard, neutral descriptor and is comparable to 'pregnant' in English, without implying any particular gestational stage beyond being expectant.