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father

/ˈfɑ.ðɚ/noun, verb2 syllables

Father means: make (offspring) by reproduction.

Synonyms for father34

noun, as in God when considered as the first person in the Trinity

God the Father, Father-God, Fatherhood

noun, as in a person who founds or establishes some institution

founder, beginner, founding father

noun, as in (Christianity) any of about 70 theologians in the period from the 2nd to the 7th century whose writing established and confirmed official church doctrine; in the Roman Catholic Church some were later declared saints and became Doctor of the Church; the best known Latin Church Fathers are Ambrose, Augustine, Gregory the Great, and Jerome; those who wrote in Greek include Athanasius, Basil, Gregory Nazianzen, and John Chrysostom

Church Father, Father of the Church

noun, as in a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)

male parent, begetter

noun, as in the founder of a family

forefather, sire

noun, as in ‘Father’ is a term of address for priests in some churches (especially the Roman Catholic Church or the Orthodox Catholic Church); ‘Padre’ is frequently used in the military

Padre

noun, as in the head of an organized crime family

don

verb, as in make (offspring) by reproduction

beget, get, engender, mother, sire, generate, bring forth

also used for father

mother and granddaddy, ayr, ba, baba, da, dad, dada, daddio, daddy, fatherling, governor, old man, pa, pap

Includes material from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Opposites of father

mother

What does father mean?9

verb

1

make (offspring) by reproduction“Abraham begot Isaac”

noun

1

God when considered as the first person in the Trinity“hear our prayers, Heavenly Father”

2

a person who founds or establishes some institution“George Washington is the father of his country”

3

(Christianity) any of about 70 theologians in the period from the 2nd to the 7th century whose writing established and confirmed official church doctrine; in the Roman Catholic Church some were later declared saints and became Doctor of the Church; the best known Latin Church Fathers are Ambrose, Augustine, Gregory the Great, and Jerome; those who wrote in Greek include Athanasius, Basil, Gregory Nazianzen, and John Chrysostom

4

a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)“his father was born in Atlanta”

5

the founder of a family“keep the faith of our forefathers”

6

‘Father’ is a term of address for priests in some churches (especially the Roman Catholic Church or the Orthodox Catholic Church); ‘Padre’ is frequently used in the military

7

the head of an organized crime family

8

a person who holds an important or distinguished position in some organization“the tennis fathers ruled in her favor”

Definitions from the Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

What rhymes with father?1

two syllables

bother
Show 40 near rhymes
moderndoctorrobertpartnerlargerdollarsproperhonordollarharderpartnersconcertdoctorsmonstersoccerfarmersarthurrogeroxfordcommercehonourcarterfosterawkwardcopperharvardcharterparkersponsoreddeparturemonstersrobertsfarmerharborscholarsartworkconvertpotterhonoredrogers

Father in a sentence

  • If it had not been for your help, my father would have failed.CK
  • If anything, my father seems happier than before.CM
  • However, my father used to fool around with women a lot.shekitten
  • Your father works for a bank, doesn't he?CK
  • Because my mother is sick, my father will cook today.CM
  • Who drives better, your father or your mother?CK
  • Suppose your father saw us together, what would he say?CM
  • The sooner you return, the happier your father will be.Swift

Sentences from Tatoeba, CC BY 2.0 FR, credited to their authors.

Forms of father

as a noun

plural
fathers

as a verb

past tense
fathered
present participle
fathering
third-person singular
fathers
past participle
fathered