paternal
pronunciation
How to pronounce paternal in British English:
UK [pəˈtɜ:nl]
How to pronounce paternal in American English:
US [pəˈtɜrnl]
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- Adjective:
- belonging to or inherited from one's father
- characteristic of a father
- relating to or characteristic of or befitting a parent
- related on the father's side
Word Origin
- paternal
- paternal: see patron
- paternal (adj.)
- early 15c., from Old French paternal "of a father" (12c.), from Medieval Latin paternalis, from Latin paternus "of a father, fatherly," from pater (see father (n.)).
Synonym
Antonym
Example
- 1. Maternal age is a factor and , according to recent research , so is paternal age .
- 2. Governments should also legislate to get employers to offer both maternal and paternal leave , and provide or subsidise child care .
- 3. Mr trivers argues that competition between our maternal and paternal genes can create " split selves " , which try to fool each other on a biological level .
- 4. These trends by themselves don 't tell us which force ( paternal , societal or otherwise ) is pushing and pulling daughters down one career path or another .
- 5. Nor can we assume , banks says , that children born to unmarried parents do not have a paternal presence , or that children born to married parents are living in a stable household .