The meaning of the word father

English[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Middle English fader, from Old English fæder, from Proto-West Germanic *fader, from Proto-Germanic *fadēr, from Proto-Indo-European *ph₂tḗr. Doublet of ayr, faeder, padre, pater, and père.

Pronunciation[edit]

  • (Received Pronunciation) enPR: fä’thə(r), IPA(key): /ˈfɑːðə(ɹ)/
  • (General American) enPR: fä’thər, IPA(key): /ˈfɑðɚ/
  • (General Australian) enPR: fä’thə, IPA(key): /ˈfɐːðə/
  • (Ireland) enPR: fä’thə, IPA(key): /ˈfɒːðɚ/
  • (obsolete) enPR: thər, thər, IPA(key): /ˈfæðəɹ/, /ˈfeɪðəɹ/[1][2]
  • Homophone: farther (in non-rhotic accents)
  • Rhymes: -ɑːðə(ɹ)
  • Hyphenation: fa‧ther

Noun[edit]

father (plural fathers)

  1. A (generally human) male who begets a child.

    My father was a strong influence on me.

    My friend Tony just became a father.

    • 1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter V, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC:

      When this conversation was repeated in detail within the hearing of the young woman in question, and undoubtedly for his benefit, Mr. Trevor threw shame to the winds and scandalized the Misses Brewster then and there by proclaiming his father to have been a country storekeeper.

    • 1980 August 1 [1 May 1980], Chiang, Ching-kuo, “President Chiang Ching-kuo continues his period of mourning and finds that visits to countryside and people give him renewed strength”, in Taiwan Today[3], archived from the original on 17 May 2020:

      My personal success or failure is insignificant; the rise or fall of the nation is my responsibility and must not be shirked. Upon introspection, I feel I am firmer than ever in confidence that the Communists will be defeated. These are feelings which will comfort Father’s soul in Heaven.

    • 2012, BioWare, Mass Effect 3 (Science Fiction), Redwood City: Electronic Arts, →OCLC, PC, scene: Apollo Cafe, Presidium Commons, Citadel:

      Shepard: The bartender over there?
      Liara: The matriarch hired by the asari government to track my movements?
      Shepard: She’s your father.
      Liara: I know.

  2. A male ancestor more remote than a parent; a progenitor; especially, a first ancestor.
    • 1611, The Holy Bible, [] (King James Version), London: [] Robert Barker, [], →OCLC, Romans 4:16:

      Therefoꝛe it is of faith, that it might bee by grace; to the ende the pꝛomiſe might be ſure to all the ſeede, not to that onely which is of the Law, but to that alſo which is of the faith of Abꝛaham, who is the father of vs all,

  3. A term of respectful address for an elderly man.

    Come, father; you can sit here.

  4. A term of respectful address for a priest.
    • c. 1603–1604 (date written), William Shakespeare, “Measure for Measure”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies [] (First Folio), London: [] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene ii]:

      Bless you, good father friar!

  5. A person who plays the role of a father in some way.

    My brother was a father to me after my parents got divorced.

    The child is father to the man.

  6. The founder of a discipline or science.

    Albert Einstein is the father of modern physics.

  7. Something that is the greatest or most significant of its kind.
    • 1991, The Nairobi Law Monthly:
      Soon after the announcement of this year’s election results, Mereka said that «the father of all battles had just begun.» His dispute with Muite goes back to March last year []
    • 2002, Financial Management:
      «If UK GDP slows by 1 per cent, there is the mother and father of all recessions. It was exciting, but very bizarre, working in such an environment.»
    • 2012, Zubairu Wai, Epistemologies of African Conflicts: Violence, Evolutionism, and the War in Sierra Leone, Palgrave Macmillan, →ISBN, page 93:

      “The Father of All Battles”
      On March 23, 1991, a band of armed insurgents attacked the town of Bomaru []

  8. Something inanimate that begets.
    • 1649, Richard Lovelace, Amyntor’s Grove, His Chloris, Arigo, and Gratiana. An Elogie.[4], Thomas Harper, page 88:

      But may the Sun and gentle weather, / When you are both growne ripe together, / Load you with fruit, such as your Father / From you with all the joyes doth gather: / And may you when one branch is dead / Graft ſuch another in it’s ſtead, []

  9. (Christianity) A member of a church council.
    • 2003, Francis Oakley, The Conciliarist Tradition: Constitutionalism in the Catholic Church, 1300–1870, →ISBN, pages 37–8:

      In proceeding in this fashion, the fathers assembled at Pisa were following the generally accepted canonistic teaching of the day []

    • 2009, Peter Chidi Okuma, Empowerment of the Catholic Laity in the Nigerian Political Situation [], →ISBN, page 177:

      On the part of the fathers of the synod, over 50 bishops, from every continent, spoke on different ‘group forms’ of the lay apostolate, whereas about 38 fathers made their own interventions in writing to the General Secretary.

    • 2014, Ronald D. Witherup, The Word of God at Vatican II: Exploring Dei Verbum, →ISBN, page 31:

      Remember that the fathers of Vatican II had rejected the first draft of the constitution on revelation entirely.

  10. (computing) The archived older version of a file that immediately precedes the current version, and was itself derived from the grandfather.
    • 2004, Ray Bradley, The Ultimate Computing Glossary for Advanced Level (page 31)
      Three generations of file are usually kept, being the grandfather, father and son files.
    • 2007, O. Ray Whittington, Patrick R. Delaney, Wiley CPA Exam Review 2008: Auditing and Attestation (page 556)
      The file from which the father was developed with the transaction files of the appropriate day is the grandfather.

Synonyms[edit]

  • (parent): see Thesaurus:father
  • (most significant thing): see mother and granddaddy

Antonyms[edit]

  • (with regards to gender) mother
  • (with regards to ancestry) son, daughter, child

Hypernyms[edit]

  • (a male parent): parent

Derived terms[edit]

  • adoptive father
  • baby father
  • be gathered to one’s fathers
  • biological father
  • birth father
  • birthing father
  • city father
  • co-father
  • co-father-in-law
  • conscript father
  • Father Christmas
  • father figure
  • father hunger
  • father in law
  • father lasher
  • father longlegs
  • father of chapel
  • Father of Lies
  • father of the House
  • father superior
  • Father Time
  • father tongue
  • father-bother merger
  • father-figure
  • father-fucker
  • father-in-law
  • father-out-law
  • father-slayer
  • father-to-be
  • fatherhood
  • fatherland
  • fatherless
  • fatherlike
  • fatherliness
  • fatherly
  • Father’s Day
  • forefather
  • foster father
  • founding father
  • gestational father
  • ghostly father
  • God the Father
  • godfather
  • gold star father
  • grandfather
  • great-grandfather
  • he could be her father
  • Heavenly Father
  • highfather
  • how’s your father
  • it is a wise child that knows his own father
  • like father like son
  • like father, like son
  • nursing father
  • one’s father was born before one
  • penny-father
  • shrift father
  • single father
  • step-father
  • stepfather
  • surrogate father

[edit]

  • Father
  • Jupiter
  • paternal

Translations[edit]

Verb[edit]

father (third-person singular simple present fathers, present participle fathering, simple past and past participle fathered)

  1. To be a father to; to sire.
    • 1591 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The First Part of Henry the Sixt”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies [] (First Folio), London: [] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene v], page 117, column 2:

      Well go too, we’ll haue no Baſtards liue, / Eſpecially ſince Charles muſt Father it.

  2. (figuratively) To give rise to.
    • 1611 April (first recorded performance), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Cymbeline”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies [] (First Folio), London: [] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene ii], page 387, column 1:

      Cowards father Cowards & Baſe things Syre Bace;

  3. To act as a father; to support and nurture.
    • 1611 April (first recorded performance), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Cymbeline”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies [] (First Folio), London: [] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene ii], page 390, column 2:

      I good youth, / And rather Father thee, then Maſter thee:

  4. To provide with a father.
    • 1599 (first performance), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Iulius Cæsar”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies [] (First Folio), London: [] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene i], page 116, column 2:

      Thinke you, I am no ſtronger then my Sex / Being ſo Father’d, and ſo Husbanded?

    • 1906, James George Frazer, Adonis, Attis, Osiris, volume 2, page 209:

      The relations of the sexes were so loose and vague that children could not be fathered on any particular man.

  5. To adopt as one’s own.
    • 1713, Jonathan Swift, Imitation of Horace, Book I. Ep. VII.
      Kept company with men of wit / Who often fathered what he writ.

Translations[edit]

See also[edit]

  • beget
  • grandpa
  • pater
  • paternal
  • sire

References[edit]

  1. ^ Krapp, George Philip (1925) The English Language in America[1], volume II, New York: Century Co. for the Modern Language Association of America, →OCLC, pages 50-51.
  2. ^ Dobson, E. J. (1957) English pronunciation 1500-1700[2], volume II: Phonology, second edition, Oxford: Clarendon Press, published 1968, →OCLC, § 6, page 467.

Anagrams[edit]

  • afther, fareth, hafter, trefah

Middle English[edit]

Noun[edit]

father

  1. (Late Middle English) Alternative form of fader

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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A father is the male parent of a child. Besides the paternal bonds of a father to his children, the father may have a parental, legal, and social relationship with the child that carries with it certain rights and obligations. A biological father is the male genetic contributor to the creation of the infant, through sexual intercourse or sperm donation. A biological father may have legal obligations to a child not raised by him, such as an obligation of monetary support. An adoptive father is a man who has become the child’s parent through the legal process of adoption. A putative father is a man whose biological relationship to a child is alleged but has not been established. A stepfather is a non-biological male parent married to a child’s preexisting parent, and may form a family unit but generally does not have the legal rights and responsibilities of a parent in relation to the child.

The adjective «paternal» refers to a father and comparatively to «maternal» for a mother. The verb «to father» means to procreate or to sire a child from which also derives the noun «fathering». Biological fathers determine the sex of their child through a sperm cell which either contains an X chromosome (female), or Y chromosome (male).[1] Related terms of endearment are dad (dada, daddy), baba, papa, pappa, papasita, (pa, pap) and pop. A male role model that children can look up to is sometimes referred to as a father-figure.

Paternal rights

The paternity rights of a father with regard to his children differ widely from country to country often reflecting the level of involvement and roles expected by that society.

Paternity leave

Parental leave is when a father takes time off to support his newly born or adopted baby.[2] Paid paternity leave first began in Sweden in 1976, and is paid in more than half of European Union countries.[3] In the case of male same-sex couples the law often makes no provision for either one or both fathers to take paternity leave.

Child custody

Fathers’ rights movements such as Fathers 4 Justice argue that family courts are biased against fathers.[4]

Child support

Child support is an ongoing periodic payment made by one parent to the other; it is normally paid by the parent who does not have custody.

Paternity fraud

An estimated 2% of British fathers experiences paternity fraud during a non-paternity event, bringing up a child they wrongly believe to be their biological offspring.[5]

Role of the father

Father and child, Dhaka, Bangladesh

In almost all cultures fathers are regarded as secondary caregivers[citation needed]. This perception is slowly changing with more and more fathers becoming primary caregivers, while mothers go to work, or in single parenting situations and male same-sex parenting couples.

Fatherhood in the Western World

A father and his children in Florida

In the West, the image of the married father as the primary wage-earner is changing. The social context of fatherhood plays an important part in the well-being of men and their children.[6] In the United States 16% of single parents were men as of 2013.[7]

Importance of father or father-figure

Involved fathers offer developmentally specific provisions to their children and are impacted themselves by doing so. Active father figures may play a role in reducing behavior and psychological problems in young adults.[8] An increased amount of father–child involvement may help increase a child’s social stability, educational achievement,[9]: 5  and their potential to have a solid marriage as an adult. Their children may also be more curious about the world around them and develop greater problem solving skills.[10] Children who were raised with fathers perceive themselves to be more cognitively and physically competent than their peers without a father.[11] Mothers raising children together with a father reported less severe disputes with their child.[12]

The father-figure is not always a child’s biological father and some children will have a biological father as well as a step- or nurturing father. When a child is conceived through sperm donation, the donor will be the «biological father» of the child.

Fatherhood as legitimate identity can be dependent on domestic factors and behaviors. For example, a study of the relationship between fathers, their sons, and home computers found that the construction of fatherhood and masculinity required that fathers display computer expertise.[13]

Determination of parenthood

Roman law defined fatherhood as «Mater semper certa; pater est quem nuptiae demonstrant» («The [identity of the] mother is always certain; the father is whom the marriage vows indicate»). The recent emergence of accurate scientific testing, particularly DNA testing, has resulted in the family law relating to fatherhood experiencing rapid changes.

History of fatherhood

Many male animals do not participate in the rearing of their young. The development of human men as creatures which are involved in their offspring’s upbringing took place during the stone age.[14]

In medieval and most of modern European history, caring for children was predominantly the domain of mothers, whereas fathers in many societies provide for the family as a whole. Since the 1950s, social scientists and feminists have increasingly challenged gender roles in Western countries, including that of the male breadwinner. Policies are increasingly targeting fatherhood as a tool of changing gender relations.[15] Research from various societies suggest that since the middle of the 20th century fathers have become increasingly involved in the care of their children.[16][17][18][19]

Patricide

In early human history there have been notable instances of patricide. For example:

  • Tukulti-Ninurta I (r. 1243–1207 B.C.E.), Assyrian king, was killed by his own son after sacking Babylon.
  • Sennacherib (r. 704–681 B.C.E.), Assyrian king, was killed by two of his sons for his desecration of Babylon.
  • King Kassapa I (473 to 495 CE) creator of the Sigiriya citadel of ancient Sri Lanka killed his father king Dhatusena for the throne.
  • Emperor Yang of Sui in Chinese history allegedly killed his father, Emperor Wen of Sui.
  • Beatrice Cenci, Italian noblewoman who, according to legend, killed her father after he imprisoned and raped her. She was condemned and beheaded for the crime along with her brother and her stepmother in 1599.
  • Lizzie Borden (1860–1927) allegedly killed her father and her stepmother with an axe in Fall River, Massachusetts, in 1892. She was acquitted, but her innocence is still disputed.
  • Iyasus I of Ethiopia (1654–1706), one of the great warrior emperors of Ethiopia, was deposed by his son Tekle Haymanot in 1706 and subsequently assassinated.

In more contemporary history there have also been instances of father–offspring conflicts, such as:

  • Chiyo Aizawa (born 1939) murdered her own father who had been raping her for fifteen years, on October 5, 1968, in Japan. The incident changed the Criminal Code of Japan regarding patricide.
  • Kip Kinkel (born 1982), an Oregon boy who was convicted of killing his parents at home and two fellow students at school on May 20, 1998.
  • Sarah Marie Johnson (born 1987), an Idaho girl who was convicted of killing both parents on the morning of September 2, 2003.
  • Dipendra of Nepal (1971–2001) reportedly massacred much of his family at a royal dinner on June 1, 2001, including his father King Birendra, mother, brother, and sister.
  • Christopher Porco (born 1983), was convicted on August 10, 2006, of the murder of his father and attempted murder of his mother with an axe.

Terminology

Biological fathers

Father holding daughter in swaddling clothes

  • Baby Daddy – A biological father who bears financial responsibility for a child, but with whom the mother has little or no contact.
  • Birth father – the biological father of a child who, due to adoption or parental separation, does not raise the child or cannot take care of one.
  • Biological father – or sometimes simply referred to as «Father» is the genetic father of a child.
  • Posthumous father – father died before children were born (or even conceived in the case of artificial insemination).
  • Putative father – unwed man whose legal relationship to a child has not been established but who is alleged to be or claims that he may be the biological father of a child.[21][22][23]
  • Sperm donor – an anonymous or known biological father who provides his sperm to be used in artificial insemination or in vitro fertilisation in order to father a child for a third party female. Also used as a slang term meaning «baby daddy».
  • Surprise father – where the men did not know that there was a child until possibly years afterward
  • Teenage father/youthful father – Father who is still a teenager.

Non-biological (social and legal relationship)

  • Adoptive father – the father who has adopted a child
  • Cuckolded father – where the child is the product of the mother’s adulterous relationship
  • DI Dad – social/legal father of children produced via Donor Insemination (where a donor’s sperm were used to impregnate the DI Dad’s spouse)
  • Father-in-law – the father of one’s spouse
  • Foster father – child is raised by a man who is not the biological or adoptive father usually as part of a couple.
  • Mother’s partner – assumption that current partner fills father role
  • Mother’s husband – under some jurisdictions (e.g. in Quebec civil law), if the mother is married to another man, the latter will be defined as the father
  • Presumed father – Where a presumption of paternity has determined that a man is a child’s father regardless of if he actually is or is not the biological father
  • Social father – where a man takes de facto responsibility for a child, such as caring for one who has been abandoned or orphaned (the child is known as a «child of the family» in English law)
  • Stepfather – a married non-biological father where the child is from a previous relationship

Fatherhood defined by contact level

  • Absent father – father who cannot or will not spend time with his child(ren)
  • Second father – a non-parent whose contact and support is robust enough that near parental bond occurs (often used for older male siblings who significantly aid in raising a child, sometimes for older men who took care of younger friends (only males) who have no families)
  • Stay-at-home dad – the male equivalent of a housewife with child, where his spouse is breadwinner
  • Weekend/holiday father – where child(ren) only stay(s) with father on weekends, holidays, etc.

Non-human fatherhood

For some animals, it is the fathers who take care of the young.

  • Darwin’s frog (Rhinoderma darwini) fathers carry eggs in the vocal pouch.
  • Most male waterfowl are very protective in raising their offspring, sharing scout duties with the female. Examples are the geese, swans, gulls, loons, and a few species of ducks. When the families of most of these waterfowl travel, they usually travel in a line and the fathers are usually the ones guarding the offspring at the end of the line while the mothers lead the way.
  • The female seahorse (Hippocampus) deposits eggs into the pouch on the male’s abdomen. The male releases sperm into the pouch, fertilizing the eggs. The embryos develop within the male’s pouch, nourished by their individual yolk sacs.
  • Male catfish keep their eggs in their mouth, foregoing eating until they hatch.
  • Male emperor penguins alone incubate their eggs; females do no incubation. Rather than building a nest, each male protects his egg by balancing it on the tops of his feet, enclosed in a special brood pouch. Once the eggs are hatched however, the females will rejoin the family.
  • Male beavers secure their offspring along with the females during their first few hours of their lives. As the young beavers mature, their fathers will teach them how to search for materials to build and repair their own dams, before they disperse to find their own mates.
  • Wolf fathers help feed, protect, and play with their pups. In some cases, several generations of wolves live in the pack, giving pups the care of grandparents, aunts/uncles, and siblings, in addition to parents. The father wolf is also the one who does most of the hunting when the females are securing their newborn pups.
  • Coyotes are monogamous and male coyotes hunt and bring food to their young.
  • Dolphin fathers help in the care of the young. Newborns are held on the surface of the water by both parents until they are ready to swim on their own.
  • A number of bird species have active, caring fathers who assist the mothers, such as the waterfowls mentioned above.
  • Apart from humans, fathers in few primate species care for their young. Those that do are tamarins and marmosets.[24] Particularly strong care is also shown by siamangs where fathers carry infants after their second year.[24] In titi and owl monkeys fathers carry their infants 90% of the time with «titi monkey infants developing a preference for their fathers over their mothers».[25] Silverback gorillas have less role in the families but most of them serve as an extra protecting the families from harm and sometimes approaching enemies to distract them so that his family can escape unnoticed.

Many species,[citation needed] though, display little or no paternal role in caring for offspring. The male leaves the female soon after mating and long before any offspring are born. It is the females who must do all the work of caring for the young.

  • A male bear leaves the female shortly after mating and will kill and sometimes eat any bear cub he comes across, even if the cub is his. Bear mothers spend much of their cubs’ early life protecting them from males. (Many artistic works, such as advertisements and cartoons, depict kindly «papa bears» when this is the exact opposite of reality.)
  • Domesticated dog fathers show little interest in their offspring, and unlike wolves, are not monogamous with their mates and are thus likely to leave them after mating.
  • Male lions will tolerate cubs, but only allow them to eat meat from dead prey after they have had their fill. A few are quite cruel towards their young and may hurt or kill them with little provocation.[citation needed] A male who kills another male to take control of his pride will also usually kill any cubs belonging to that competing male. However, it is also the males who are responsible for guarding the pride while the females hunt. However the male lions are the only felines that actually have a role in fatherhood.
  • Male rabbits generally tolerate kits but unlike the females, they often show little interest in the kits and are known to play rough with their offspring when they are mature, especially towards their sons. This behaviour may also be part of an instinct to drive the young males away to prevent incest matings between the siblings. The females will eventually disperse from the warren as soon as they mature but the father does not drive them off like he normally does to the males.
  • Horse stallions and pig boars have little to no role in parenting, nor are they monogamous with their mates. They will tolerate young to a certain extent, but due to their aggressive male nature, they are generally annoyed by the energetic exuberance of the young, and may hurt or even kill the young. Thus, stud stallions and boars are not kept in the same pen as their young or other females.

Finally, in some species neither the father nor the mother provides any care.

  • This is true for most insects, reptiles, and fish.

See also

  • Father complex
  • Fathers’ rights movement
  • Paternal age effect
  • Patricide
  • Paternal bond
  • Putative father
  • Putative father registry
  • Responsible fatherhood
  • Shared Earning/Shared Parenting Marriage
  • Sociology of fatherhood
  • «Father» can also refer metaphorically to a person who is considered the founder of a body of knowledge or of an institution. In such context the meaning of «father» is similar to that of «founder». See List of persons considered father or mother of a field.

Further reading

  • Elizabeth Preston (27 Jun 2021). «The riddle of how humans evolved to have fathers». Knowable Magazine / BBC.com.

References

  1. ^ HUMAN GENETICS, MENDELIAN INHERITANCE Archived 2000-10-27 at the Wayback Machine retrieved 25 February 2012
  2. ^ «What is paternity leave?». Archived from the original on 2020-06-14. Retrieved 2016-05-06.
  3. ^ Mapped: Paid paternity leave across the EU…which countries are the most generous? Archived 2017-11-24 at the Wayback Machine Published by The Telegraph, 18 April 2016
  4. ^ Fathers 4 Justice take their fight for rights across the Atlantic Archived 2018-12-10 at the Wayback Machine Published by The Telegraph, 8 May 2005
  5. ^ One in 50 British fathers unknowingly raises another man’s child Archived 2019-03-21 at the Wayback Machine Published by The Telegraph, April 6, 2016
  6. ^ Garfield, CF, Clark-Kauffman, K, David, MM; Clark-Kauffman; Davis (Nov 15, 2006). «Fatherhood as a Component of Men’s Health». Journal of the American Medical Association. 296 (19): 2365–8. doi:10.1001/jama.296.19.2365. PMID 17105800.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  7. ^ «Facts for Features». Archived from the original on April 24, 2013. Retrieved October 25, 2013.
  8. ^ McLanahan, Sara; Tach, Laura; Schneider, Daniel (2013), «The Causal Effects of Father Absence», Annual Review of Sociology, 39: 399–427, doi:10.1146/annurev-soc-071312-145704, PMC 3904543, PMID 24489431
  9. ^ Karberg, Elizabeth; Finocharo, Jane; Vann, Nigel (2019). «Father and Child Well-Being: A Scan of Current Research» (PDF). fatherhood.gov. National Responsible Fatherhood Clearinghouse. Retrieved October 17, 2019.
  10. ^ United States. National Center for Fathering, Kansas City, MO. Partnership for Family Involvement in Education. A Call to Commitment: Fathers’ Involvement in Children’s Learning Archived 2020-02-17 at the Wayback Machine. June 2000
  11. ^ Golombok, S; Tasker, F; Murray, C (1997). «Children raised in fatherless families from infancy: family relationships and the socioemotional development of children of lesbian and single heterosexual mothers». J Child Psychol Psychiatry. 38 (7): 783–91. doi:10.1111/j.1469-7610.1997.tb01596.x. PMID 9363577.
  12. ^ MacCallum, Fiona; Golombok, Susan (2004). «Children raised in fatherless families from infancy: A follow-up of children of lesbian and single heterosexual mothers at early adolescence». Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry. 45 (8): 1407–1419. doi:10.1111/j.1469-7610.2004.00324.x. PMID 15482501.
  13. ^ Ribak, Rivka (2001). ««Like immigrants»: negotiating power in the face of the home computer». New Media & Society. 3 (2): 220–238. doi:10.1177/1461444801003002005. S2CID 8179638.
  14. ^ Betuel, Emma. «Why ancient men had to evolve from carousers to doting dads — or die». Inverse.
  15. ^ Bjørnholt, M. (2014). «Changing men, changing times; fathers and sons from an experimental gender equality study» (PDF). The Sociological Review. 62 (2): 295–315. doi:10.1111/1467-954X.12156. S2CID 143048732. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2018-10-21. Retrieved 2016-05-21.
  16. ^ University of California, Irvine (September 28, 2016). «Today’s parents spend more time with their kids than moms and dads did 50 years ago». Science Daily. Retrieved November 3, 2020.
  17. ^ Livingston, Gretchen; Parker, Kim (19 June 2019). «8 facts about American dads». Pew Research Center. Retrieved 2022-02-02.
  18. ^ Blamires, Diana; Kirkham, Sophie (17 August 2005). «Fathers play greater role in childcare». the Guardian. Retrieved 2022-02-02.
  19. ^ Huerta, Maria C.; Adema, Willem; Baxter, Jennifer; Han, Wen-Jui; Lausten, Mette; Lee, RaeHyuck; Waldfogel, Jane (16 December 2014). «Fathers’ Leave and Fathers’ Involvement: Evidence from Four OECD Countries». European Journal of Social Security. 16 (4): 308–346. doi:10.1177/138826271401600403. ISSN 1388-2627. PMC 5415087. PMID 28479865.
  20. ^ Sciulo, Marília Mara (14 November 2021). «Princesa Isabel: 6 fatos para entender o papel da regente na história» (in Portuguese). Retrieved 13 November 2022.
  21. ^ Child Welfare Information Gateway (30 June 2010). «The Rights of Unmarried Fathers». U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
  22. ^ Bouvier, John (1987). Bouvier’s Law Dictionary. Boston: The Boston Book Company.
  23. ^ Lehman, Jeffrey; Phelps, Shirelle (2005). West’s Encyclopedia of American Law, Vol. 8 (2 ed.). Detroit: Thomson/Gale. p. 192. ISBN 9780787663742.
  24. ^ a b Fernandez-Duque, E; Valeggia, CR; Mendoza, SP (2009). «Biology of Paternal Care in Human and Nonhuman Primates». Annu. Rev. Anthropol. 38: 115–30. doi:10.1146/annurev-anthro-091908-164334. S2CID 51896336.
  25. ^ Mendoza, SP; Mason, WA (1986). «Parental division of labour and differentiation of attachments in a monogamous primate (Callicebus moloch)». Anim. Behav. 34 (5): 1336–47. doi:10.1016/s0003-3472(86)80205-6. S2CID 53159072.

Bibliography

Look up father in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Fatherhood.

  • Inhorn, Marcia C.; Chavkin, Wendy; Navarro, José-Alberto, eds. (2015). Globalized fatherhood. New York: Berghahn. ISBN 9781782384373. Studies by anthropologists, sociologists, and cultural geographers —
  • Kraemer, Sebastian (1991). «The Origins of Fatherhood: An Ancient Family Process». Family Process. 30 (4): 377–392. doi:10.1111/j.1545-5300.1991.00377.x. PMID 1790784.
  • Diamond, Michael J. (2007). My father before me : how fathers and sons influence each other throughout their lives. New York: W.W. Norton. ISBN 9780393060607.
  • Collier, Richard (2013). «Rethinking men and masculinities in the contemporary legal profession: the example of fatherhood, transnational business masculinities, and work-life balance in large law firms». Nevada Law Journal. 13 (2): 7.

Noun



He became a father when he was 30.



He’s the father of three small children.



He has been like a father to me.



He was a father to me after my own father died.

Verb



He was praised for fathering a plan to improve the city’s schools.



Paul Revere somehow found room in his small house for the large family he had fathered.

See More

Recent Examples on the Web



Simms, who is widely considered the father of modern gynecology, experimented on enslaved women to develop those medical techniques— Lucy, Anarcha, Betsey, and at least 11 women whose identities are unknown.


Shauna Stuart | Sstuart@al.com, al, 5 Apr. 2023





In one video Gonzalez can be seen approaching the passenger side of a car occupied by Rodriguez and the father of her child, Rafeul Chowdhury, then 20, and his 16-year-old brother, none of whom were armed.


Christian Martinez, Los Angeles Times, 4 Apr. 2023





In February, Cooper shared the first father-son photo of himself and Sebastian on Instagram.


Georgia Slater, Peoplemag, 3 Apr. 2023





Ward told Brooke that her son is a U.S. military veteran and father of one, and that his musical career was just beginning to take off at the time of his death in a drive-by shooting.


Dan Carson, Chron, 3 Apr. 2023





Glover, 46, is a Navy captain, a father of four and one of only a half dozen African Americans in NASA’s astronaut corps.


William Harwood, CBS News, 3 Apr. 2023





Proud father Fa-raon has now retired from his role as Le Bristol’s resident feline, passing the baton to Socrate, who will take on the position as his successor.


Sandra Macgregor, Forbes, 2 Apr. 2023





Born in Tokyo in 1952 to a clothes designer mother and literary editor father, Sakamoto was surrounded by music, art and culture from a young age.


Gavin J Blair, The Hollywood Reporter, 2 Apr. 2023





The project was nearly an orphan — scorned even by the engineer who designed it and was known as the father of MOSE, Alberto Scotti.


Emma Bubola Laetitia Vancon, New York Times, 1 Apr. 2023




Just two males had fathered more than half the calves born to the southern residents since 1990.


Bill Kearney, Sun Sentinel, 30 Mar. 2023





That’s the crisis of masculinity, that men are under-fathered.


Christopher Vourlias, Variety, 18 Feb. 2023





His mother was a PhD biochemistry engineer and father a turbine engineer.


Bruce Rogers, Forbes, 27 Mar. 2023





After the inferno swept through, Koresh and 74 other Davidians, including 25 children (some of whom Koresh had fathered), were found dead.


Christine Pelisek, Peoplemag, 21 Mar. 2023





Prior studies have suggested that inbreeding was a problem, including a 2018 study that found just two males had fathered more than half the calves born to the southern residents since 1990.


Gene Johnson, Anchorage Daily News, 20 Mar. 2023





Us Weekly reports that despite Thompson cheating on Kardashian multiple times, including fathering a child with someone else while he was secretly engaged to her, the basketball player is still romantically pursuing her.


Alyssa Bailey, ELLE, 15 Mar. 2023





This gives all males involved a chance to father some bouncing baby squid.


Elizabeth Preston, Discover Magazine, 12 Aug. 2011





If Bruce didn’t father Damien until sometime in his mid-20s, then Bruce would be cast in the mid-to-late 30s range.


Mark Hughes, Forbes, 8 Mar. 2023



See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word ‘father.’ Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

A father might sell his children as servants, i.e., his _daughters_, in which circumstance it was understood the daughter was to be the wife or daughter-in-law of the man who bought her, and the _father_ received the price. ❋ American Anti-Slavery Society (N/A)

A father might sell his children as servants, i.e. his _daughters_, in which circumstance it was understood the daughter was to be the wife or daughter-in-law of the man who bought her, and the _father_ received the price. ❋ American Anti-Slavery Society (N/A)

«But, father,» the Golden Maiden said — she called him _father_ now and it pleased him mightily; «father, I should rather marry Janko!» ❋ Parker Fillmore (1911)

«Do you mean to tell me,» she inquired, with something approaching sternness, «that my father — _my father_ — was ever fond of poetry and — and music, and — and all that sort of thing?» ❋ Henry Blake Fuller (1893)

I cannot conscientiously add _father_; for, at a certain early period of her history, the child showed a decided preference for her uncle over her father. ❋ George MacDonald (1864)

‘My poor grandfather, Mr Palmer, to save a son, _my father_’ — this was said with infinite sadness — ‘yes, my father, from disgrace, borrowed a sum of money, a very large sum, from the old Squire. ❋ Emma Marshall (1864)

Christ, my Lord, had died for them as well as for me; and here was my father, — _my father_ — practically saying that they should not hear of it, nor know the message He had sent to them. ❋ Susan Warner (1852)

Christ, my Lord, had died for them as well as for me; and here was my father — _my father_ — practically saying that they should not hear of it, nor know the message He had sent to them. ❋ Susan Warner (1852)

The duties of a father are not the same as those of a son; is the word therefore wholly equivocal when we speak of one person as a _good father_, and another as a _good son_? ❋ Henry Longueville Mansel (1845)

But he was wrong, I did want a father, and every day the want became more pressing, and I found myself continually repeating the question, «_Who is my father_?» ❋ Frederick Marryat (1820)

Hamlet, sorely indignant that she should give so dear and honoured a name as father seemed to him, to a wretch who was indeed no better than the murderer of his true father, with some sharpness replied, «Mother, _you_ have much offended _my father_.» ❋ Mary Lamb (1805)

_father_, ‘and not’ the little _mother_ ‘; it is only the father who has made her. ❋ Alexander F. Chamberlain (N/A)

Again; when He saw James and John with their father Zebedee, «He _called_ them; and they _immediately left the ship, and their father_, and _followed_ ❋ John Henry Newman (1845)

«As long as you please, my dear father,» said I. «_Your dear father_! ❋ Maria Edgeworth (1808)

Clo, So you have; but I was a gentleman born be* fore my father; for the King*s fon took me by the hand, and calPd me brother; and then the two Kings caird my father brother; and then the Prince my bro* ther, and the Princefs my fifter, calPd my father, father*, and fo we wept; and there was the firft gentleman-likd tears that ever we (hed. ❋ Unknown (1773)

The term father may conjure up a negative image for you. ❋ BOB RUSSELL (2003)

[Oh shit]! its [my father] [hide]. ❋ Kim (2004)

me: can i drive today
dad:no
me:oh come on
dad:if [we die] itz your fault
me:i got my ass kicked at school today
dad:you loser
me:they [stole my lunch] money too
dad:man you’re the biggest mistake i ever made
me:…
dad:[come on son] lets go and hurt does guys then lets go to a buffet ❋ Shitastic (2004)

[BITCH i] [dont] know [my father] ❋ Jack (2003)

[harder daddy] (father) ❋ Nicccccccccc (2020)

I work hard to be [a good father] to all [my kids]. I’ve raised them all to be wise and [productive]. ❋ The Wog Whomper (2005)

Mommy, who’s [my father]?
[A drunk] bastard
[Yippee]! ❋ T (2003)

father [set’s] rules only to be overidden by the mother father said can’t have anymore [pets] mother buys [crab]. crabs are not pets? ❋ Punksaturny Phil (2010)

i’m sorry son but your father thinks it’s funny to pay £1 a month in child maintenance and not see you or help me in any way. I have to face the facts my sweet — despite the guise of a long term [live-in] relationship which [culminated] in a unplanned pregnancy, he was just a [sperm donor]. ok let’s go to the park and have some fun instead of thinking about that 50% of you honeypie ❋ Vixen5 (2008)

Me: My father was [a asshole]
Person #2 :Yea so is mine
Me : Do not say [shit like that] ,you be thankful you at least have [a father] to be there for you ,to love you and take care of you ❋ Inahzi (2007)

Father: HEY SON [IM GONNA GET SOME MILK] FOR UR CEREAL
[Som]: Don’t even bother [coming back]. ❋ Bollzinurjawz (2022)

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noun

a male parent.

a father-in-law, stepfather, or adoptive father.

any male ancestor, especially the founder of a family or line; progenitor.

a man who exercises paternal care over other people; paternal protector or provider: a father to his students.

a person who has originated or established something: the father of modern psychology;the founding fathers.

a precursor, prototype, or early form: The horseless carriage was the father of the modern automobile.

one of the most well-known or prominent men in a city, town, etc.: a scandal involving several of the city fathers.

Chiefly British. the oldest member of a society, profession, etc.Compare dean (def. 3).

Literary. a title of respect for an elderly man, or for something personified as an elderly man: Father Time.

Also called church father .Church History. any of the chief early Christian writers, whose works are the main sources for the history, doctrines, and observances of the church in the early ages.

Ecclesiastical.

  1. (often initial capital letter) a title of reverence, as for church dignitaries, officers of monasteries, monks, confessors, and especially priests.
  2. a person bearing this title.

verb (used with object)

to beget; be the father of: He fathered seven children over three marriages.

to be the creator, founder, or author of; originate.

to care for or protect like a father; act paternally toward: He’s always fathering me and telling me to eat more vegetables.Our cat fathered the orphaned kittens.

Archaic. to acknowledge oneself the father of: He would only father the novel if it became popular.

to assume as one’s own; take the responsibility of.

to charge with the begetting of.

verb (used without object)

to perform the tasks or duties of a male parent; act paternally: He fathers like he’s been doing it for years, though his kid is only three months old.

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Origin of father

First recorded before 900; Middle English fader, Old English fæder; cognate with German Vater, Latin pater, Greek patḗr, Sanskrit pitar-, Old Irish athir, Armenian hayr; all from Proto-Indo-European pətḗr. As in mother, th was substituted for d, possibly on the model of brother.

OTHER WORDS FROM father

fa·ther·like, adjective

Words nearby father

fath., fathead, fatheaded, fathead minnow, fat hen, father, Father Christmas, father confessor, father figure, Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do, fatherhood

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Words related to father

ancestor, dad, parent, predecessor, minister, conceive, begetter, daddy, origin, pa, padre, papa, pop, progenitor, sire, source, clergyman, confessor, ecclesiastic, parson

How to use father in a sentence

  • “I think that Joe Biden will be the person to protect Anthony and those with preexisting conditions,” the father says.

  • Six unknowing months before the start of the Great Depression, my father arrived.

  • While DeFazio and other lawmakers haven’t called for a permanent grounding of the jet, the father of a woman who died in the Ethiopia crash said the report raised questions about the plane’s return to service.

  • I have been yelled at basically my entire life, from my father, my family, to high school.

  • Anthony Mallott said that no one asked his father to resign, and that he did so voluntarily.

  • What matters is being honest, humble, and a faithful and loyal friend, father and member of your community.

  • Father Joel Román Salazar died in a car crash in 2013; his death was ruled an accident, but the suspicion of foul play persists.

  • Charles “Father” Coughlin, a raving anti-Semite, was one of the most popular radio hosts in the country.

  • You will have your beloved father back sooner than you think, and you can visit and communicate with him all the while.

  • “There is a heavy security presence but nothing has changed,” agrees Father Javier.

  • There was a rumor that Alessandro and his father had both died; but no one knew anything certainly.

  • And he was gone, and out of sight on the swift galloping Benito, before Father Gaspara bethought himself.

  • At this same time they seized in Nangasaqui a servant of the father provincial, Matheo Couros, who was washing his clothes.

  • He wanted to tell her that if she called her father, it would mean the end of everything for them, but he withheld this.

  • The Father had been in sore straits of mind, as month after month had passed without tidings of his «blessed child.»

British Dictionary definitions for father (1 of 2)


noun

a male parent

a person who founds a line or family; forefather

any male acting in a paternal capacityRelated adjective: paternal

(often capital) a respectful term of address for an old man

a male who originates somethingthe father of modern psychology

a leader of an association, council, etc; eldera city father

British the eldest or most senior member in a society, profession, etcfather of the bar

(often plural) a senator or patrician in ancient Rome

the father of informal a very large, severe, etc, example of a specified kindthe father of a whipping

verb (tr)

to procreate or generate (offspring); beget

to create, found, originate, etc

to act as a father to

to acknowledge oneself as father or originator of

(foll by on or upon) to impose or place without a just reason

Derived forms of father

fathering, noun

Word Origin for father

Old English fæder; related to Old Norse fathir, Old Frisian feder, Old High German fater, Latin pater, Greek patēr, Sanskrit pitr

British Dictionary definitions for father (2 of 2)


noun

God, esp when considered as the first person of the Christian Trinity

Also called: Church Father any of the writers on Christian doctrine of the pre-Scholastic period

a title used for Christian priests

Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with father


see like father, like son.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

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