Table of Contents
Definition of Fertility Rate
(noun) Average number (rate) of children born to a woman in a population over her reproductive lifetime.
Fertility Rate Pronunciation
Syllabification: fer·til·i·ty rate
Audio Pronunciation
Phonetic Spelling
- American English – /fuhr-tIl-uh-tee rAYt/
- British English – /fuhr-tIl-i-tee rAYt/
International Phonetic Alphabet
- American English – /fərˈtɪləti reɪt/
- British English – /fə(ː)ˈtɪlɪti reɪt/
Usage Notes
- Plural: fertility rates
- The fertility rate is one of several rates called social statistics studied by sociologists in addition to the birth rate, divorce rate, and mortality rate.
- Not to be confused with birth rate.
Additional Information
- Quantitative Research Resources – Books, Journals, and Helpful Links
- Family and Kinship Resources – Books, Journals, and Helpful Links
- Word origin of “fertility” and “rate” – Online Etymology Dictionary: etymonline.com
Related Terms
- cohort
- cohort effect
- cohort study
- demography
- family
- population
- research
- statistics
- statistical analysis
- study
Works Consulted
Brinkerhoff, David, Lynn White, Suzanne Ortega, and Rose Weitz. 2011. Essentials of Sociology. 8th ed. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Castree, Noel, Rob Kitchin, and Alisdair Rogers. 2013. A Dictionary of Human Geography. New York: Oxford University Press.
Clarke, Alan. 2010. The Sociology of Healthcare. 2nd ed. Harlow, England: Longman.
Ferrante, Joan. 2011. Sociology: A Global Perspective. 7th ed. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Ferris, Kerry, and Jill Stein. 2010. The Real World: An Introduction to Sociology. 2nd ed. New York: Norton.
Gregory, Derek, Ron Johnston, Geraldine Pratt, Michael Watts, and Sarah Whatmore, eds. 2009. The Dictionary of Human Geography. 5th ed. Malden, MA: Blackwell.
Griffiths, Heather, Nathan Keirns, Eric Strayer, Susan Cody-Rydzewski, Gail Scaramuzzo, Tommy Sadler, Sally Vyain, Jeff Bry, Faye Jones. 2016. Introduction to Sociology 2e. Houston, TX: OpenStax.
Henslin, James M. 2012. Sociology: A Down-to-Earth Approach. 10th ed. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
Hughes, Michael, and Carolyn J. Kroehler. 2011. Sociology: The Core. 10th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Kendall, Diana. 2011. Sociology in Our Times. 8th ed. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Scott, John, and Gordon Marshall. 2005. A Dictionary of Sociology. New York: Oxford University Press.
Shepard, Jon M. 2010. Sociology. 11th ed. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Shepard, Jon M., and Robert W. Greene. 2003. Sociology and You. New York: Glencoe.
Tischler, Henry L. 2011. Introduction to Sociology. 10th ed. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Cite the Definition of Fertility Rate
ASA – American Sociological Association (5th edition)
Bell, Kenton, ed. 2013. “fertility rate.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Retrieved April 23, 2024 (https://sociologydictionary.org/fertility-rate/).
APA – American Psychological Association (6th edition)
fertility rate. (2013). In K. Bell (Ed.), Open education sociology dictionary. Retrieved from https://sociologydictionary.org/fertility-rate/
Chicago/Turabian: Author-Date – Chicago Manual of Style (16th edition)
Bell, Kenton, ed. 2013. “fertility rate.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Accessed April 23, 2024. https://sociologydictionary.org/fertility-rate/.
MLA – Modern Language Association (7th edition)
“fertility rate.” Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Ed. Kenton Bell. 2013. Web. 23 Apr. 2024. <https://sociologydictionary.org/fertility-rate/>.