paternal
AdjectiveUS[puh-tur-nuhl]/pəˈtɝnəl/3 syllables
Open English WordNet
Adjective (4)
- belonging to or inherited from one's father“spent his childhood on the paternal farm”“paternal traits”Relating to male parent
- characteristic of a fatherOpposite maternalSimilar paternalistic, fatherlyRelates to fatherliness, paternal qualitySee also patriarchal
- relating to or characteristic of or befitting a parent“parental guidance”Synonyms: parentalmaternal
- related on the father's side“a paternal aunt”Synonyms: agnateagnaticOpposite unrelatedSimilar related
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perniciousadjective
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Webster's Dictionary (1913)
Pa·ter′nal adjective
Origin: L. paternus, fr. pater a father: cf. F. paternel. See Father.
1. Of or pertaining to a father; fatherly; showing the disposition of a father; guiding or instructing as a father; as, paternal care. “Under paternal rule.” John Milton
2. Received or derived from a father; hereditary; as, a paternal estate.
Their small paternal field of corn.— John Dryden
Paternal government Polit. Science, the assumption by the governing power of a quasi-fatherly relation to the people, involving strict and intimate supervision of their business and social concerns, upon the theory that they are incapable of managing their own affairs.
Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913), from GCIDE 0.54