- relating to or characteristic of a father, esp in showing affection, encouragement, etc; fatherly
- (prenominal) related through the father: my paternal grandfather
- inherited or derived from the male parent
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
pa•ter•nal /pəˈtɜrnəl/USA pronunciation
adj.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- of, relating to, characteristic of, or befitting a father;
fatherly:paternal advice. - related on the father's side:his paternal grandfather.
- derived or inherited from a father.
pa•ter•nal
(pə tûr′nl),USA pronunciation adj.
pa•ter′nal•ly, adv.
- characteristic of or befitting a father;
fatherly: a kind and paternal reprimand. - of or pertaining to a father.
- related on the father's side: one's paternal grandfather.
- derived or inherited from a father: paternal traits.
- Late Latin paternālis, equivalent. to Latin patern(us) paternal (pater father + -nus adjective, adjectival suffix) + -ālis -al1
- late Middle English 1400–50
- 1. See fatherly.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
paternal /pəˈtɜːnəl/ adj
'paternal' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
father
- patrimony
- agnate
- amitate
- clan
- emancipate
- fatherly
- gotra
- nameless
- paternalism
- paternity
- patria potestas
- patrocliny
- pronominal
- repatriate