father meaning and definition

FATHER noun

Definition of father (noun)

1. a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
   • "his father was born in Atlanta"
   • synonyms: begetter, male parent
   • antonym: female parent
2. the founder of a family
   • "keep the faith of our forefathers"
   • synonyms: forefather, sire
3. `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
   • synonyms: Padre
4. (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
   • synonyms: Church Father, Father of the Church
5. a person who holds an important or distinguished position in some organization
   • "the tennis fathers ruled in her favor"; "the city fathers endorsed the proposal"
6. God when considered as the first person in the Trinity
   • "hear our prayers, Heavenly Father"
   • synonyms: Father-God, Fatherhood
7. a person who founds or establishes some institution
   • "George Washington is the father of his country"
   • synonyms: beginner, founder, founding father
8. the head of an organized crime family
   • synonyms: don

FATHER verb

Definition of father (verb)

1. make children
   • "Abraham begot Isaac"; "Men often father children but don't recognize them"
   • synonyms: beget, bring forth, engender, generate, get, mother, sire