Natal is most often used in medicineThe field of treating illness and injuries with drugs and procedures., biologyThe scientific study of living things and their processes., and formal writing to describe something connected with birth. It can also be a place name, including a region in South Africa and a city in Brazil. In an older, rare sense, it can refer to the buttocksThe two round parts of the body at the back below the waist..

Reviewed with OpenAI Decisions. Assessment: accurate. Checked: 2026-10-25. AI assessment; not a guarantee of accuracy.

Pronunciation

AI-generated pronunciation audio (OpenAI).

Accent: General American English

IPA: /ˈneɪtəl/

Easy pronunciation: NAY-tuhl (approximate spelling).

Stress: Stress the first syllable: NAY-tuhl.

Use this for the adjective meaning connected with birth.

Reviewed with OpenAI Decisions. Assessment: uncertain — manual review needed. Checked: 2026-10-25. AI assessment; not a guarantee of accuracy.

Natal Meaning

connected with birth

Part of speech: adjective

Definition: relating to or accompanying birth

Example: The baby was monitored closely for any natal complications.

Reviewed with OpenAI Decisions. Assessment: accurate. Checked: 2026-10-25. AI assessment; not a guarantee of accuracy.

Other Meanings of Natal

Meaning 2

a region in South Africa

Part of speech: noun

Definition: a region of eastern South Africa on the Indian Ocean

Example: They traveled through Natal during their holiday.

Synonyms for this meaning:

• kwazulu-natal — The supplied source points to the modern place name, though it is not a true synonym in normal usage.

Meaning 3

a city in Brazil

Part of speech: noun

Definition: a port city in northeastern Brazil

Example: Natal is one of the major cities in northeastern Brazil.

Meaning 4

related to the buttocks

Part of speech: adjective

Definition: of or relating to the buttocks

Example: This sense is rare and mainly found in medical or anatomical language.

Reviewed with OpenAI Decisions. Assessment: uncertain — manual review needed. Checked: 2026-10-25. AI assessment; not a guarantee of accuracy.

Natal Synonyms

Similar Meaning

• birth-related
• birth
• congenital

place name: a region in South Africa

• KwaZulu-Natal

Reviewed with OpenAI Decisions. Assessment: inaccurate — correction needed. Checked: 2026-10-25. AI assessment; not a guarantee of accuracy.

Common Mistakes

• Do not confuse natal with native. Natal means connected with birth, not simply born in a place.
• Do not assume natal is a general synonym for pregnancy or newborn; it specifically means related to birth or birth itself in formal contexts.
• Do not treat the place-name uses as ordinary descriptive synonyms of the adjective.

Reviewed with OpenAI Decisions. Assessment: accurate. Checked: 2026-10-25. AI assessment; not a guarantee of accuracy.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does natal mean?

Natal usually means relating to birth, especially in formal or medical writing.

What are the synonyms of natal?

For the birth-related sense, good synonyms include birth-related, congenital, and birth in some contexts. Place-name uses do not have direct everyday synonyms.

Is natal a common word?

It is a real word, but it is fairly formal and is much less common than words like birth-related or congenital.

Reviewed with OpenAI Decisions. Assessment: accurate. Checked: 2026-10-25. AI assessment; not a guarantee of accuracy.