Obstetrician

Obstetrician

An obstetrician means a person who assists in childbirth. There is a similar word, obstacle. Here must be something in common.

There are two Latin words, “ob” and “stō”, which mean “against or in front of” and “I stand”, respectively. Thus, “obstō”, which is also a Latin verb, means “I stand in front of (something)”.

It makes sense that an obstetrician is someone who stands in front of (and helps) a woman (who gives birth), and an obstacle is something that stands in the way.