hidden twin
Concealed womb companion
A hidden twin is a fetus that dies early in pregnancy and is absorbed by the surviving twin or the mother's body, leaving no trace at birth.
The phenomenon, also called vanishing twin syndrome, is detected only when early ultrasound shows twins but later scans reveal a singleton.
In popular psychology, hidden twin sometimes appears as a quasi-mystical explanation for feelings of incompleteness or survivor's guilt: She wondered if her lifelong loneliness stemmed from a hidden twin.
- vanishingCeasing to be visible
- absorbedTook in fully
- wombFetal development organ
- in uteroWithin the womb
- fetusGestating offspring
chimera · survivor · shadow · mirror · sibling · the other half · embryo · merge · one body · remnant · ghost · DNA · identical · fraternal · conception · ultrasound · pregnancy · loss