/ dʒeˈsteɪʃn; NAmE / noun
1.
[ U , sing. ] the time that the young of a person or an animal develops inside its mother's body until it is born; the process of developing inside the mother's body :
a baby born at 38 weeks' gestation
The gestation period of a horse is about eleven months.
2.
[ U ] ( formal ) the process by which an idea or a plan develops
SYN development
••
WORD ORIGIN
mid 16th cent. (denoting an excursion on horseback, in a carriage, etc., considered as exercise): from Latin gestatio(n-) , from gestare carry, carry in the womb, frequentative of gerere carry.