paternal

adjective

pa·​ter·​nal pə-ˈtər-nᵊl 

1

a

: of or relating to a father

offered his children some paternal advice

paternal responsibilities

b

: like that of a father

paternal benevolence

2

: received or inherited from one's male parent

lived and worked on his paternal farm

3

: related through one's father

paternal grandfather

paternally

pə-ˈtər-nᵊl-ē 

adverb

Examples of paternal in a Sentence

He did not neglect his paternal responsibilities after the divorce.

Recent Examples on the Web

Her paternal grandparents are immigrants from Mexico, and Gomez has expressed pride in her family's roots. —Barbara A. Perry, Newsweek, 28 Jan. 2025

Andrew's two children, who were traveling with them, were put into their paternal grandparents' custody. —Christina Coulter, Fox News, 26 Jan. 2025

In 2020, Johnson’s paternal grandmother, Karen Richards, died in 2020 of colon cancer. —Edward Lee, Baltimore Sun, 23 Jan. 2025

In his new autobiography, the Pope recalled how his paternal grandparents and father had planned to sail in 1927 on the Principessa Mafalda from Italy to Argentina, which sank with the loss of many lives, but ended up making a later crossing. —Christopher Lamb, CNN, 19 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Late Latin paternalis, from Latin paternus paternal, from pater

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

paternal

adjective

pa·​ter·​nal pə-ˈtərn-ᵊl 

1

: fatherly

paternal advice

2

: received or inherited from one's father

3

: related through the father

a paternal grandfather

paternally

-ᵊl-ē 

adverb

Etymology

from Latin paternalis "fatherly," from earlier paternus (same meaning), from pater "father" — related to padre, patron, pattern