- Father
- Father Fa"ther (f[aum]"[th][~e]r), n. [OE. fader, AS.
f[ae]der; akin to OS. fadar, D. vader, OHG. fatar, G. vater,
Icel. fa[eth]ir Sw. & Dan. fader, OIr. athir, L. pater, Gr.
path`r, Skr. pitr, perh. fr. Skr. p[=a] protect. [root]75,
247. Cf. {Papa}, {Paternal}, {Patriot}, {Potential},
{Pablum}.]
1. One who has begotten a child, whether son or daughter; a
generator; a male parent.
[1913 Webster]
A wise son maketh a glad father. --Prov. x. 1. [1913 Webster]
2. A male ancestor more remote than a parent; a progenitor; especially, a first ancestor; a founder of a race or family; -- in the plural, fathers, ancestors. [1913 Webster]
David slept with his fathers. --1 Kings ii. 10. [1913 Webster]
Abraham, who is the father of us all. --Rom. iv. 16. [1913 Webster]
3. One who performs the offices of a parent by maintenance, affetionate care, counsel, or protection. [1913 Webster]
I was a father to the poor. --Job xxix. 16. [1913 Webster]
He hath made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house. --Gen. xiv. 8. [1913 Webster]
4. A respectful mode of address to an old man. [1913 Webster]
And Joash the king of Israel came down unto him [Elisha], . . . and said, O my father, my father! --2 Kings xiii. 14. [1913 Webster]
5. A senator of ancient Rome. [1913 Webster]
6. A dignitary of the church, a superior of a convent, a confessor (called also {father confessor}), or a priest; also, the eldest member of a profession, or of a legislative assembly, etc. [1913 Webster]
Bless you, good father friar ! --Shak. [1913 Webster]
7. One of the chief ecclesiastical authorities of the first centuries after Christ; -- often spoken of collectively as the Fathers; as, the Latin, Greek, or apostolic Fathers. [1913 Webster]
8. One who, or that which, gives origin; an originator; a producer, author, or contriver; the first to practice any art, profession, or occupation; a distinguished example or teacher. [1913 Webster]
The father of all such as handle the harp and organ. --Gen. iv. 21. [1913 Webster]
Might be the father, Harry, to that thought. --Shak. [1913 Webster]
The father of good news. --Shak. [1913 Webster]
9. The Supreme Being and Creator; God; in theology, the first person in the Trinity. [1913 Webster]
Our Father, which art in heaven. --Matt. vi. 9. [1913 Webster]
Now had the almighty Father from above . . . Bent down his eye. --Milton. [1913 Webster]
{Adoptive father}, one who adopts the child of another, treating it as his own.
{Apostolic father}, {Conscript fathers, etc.} See under {Apostolic}, {Conscript}, etc.
{Father in God}, a title given to bishops.
{Father of lies}, the Devil.
{Father of the bar}, the oldest practitioner at the bar.
{Fathers of the city}, the aldermen.
{Father of the Faithful}. (a) Abraham. --Rom. iv. --Gal. iii. 6-9. (b) Mohammed, or one of the sultans, his successors.
{Father of the house}, the member of a legislative body who has had the longest continuous service.
{Most Reverend Father in God}, a title given to archbishops and metropolitans, as to the archbishops of Canterbury and York.
{Natural father}, the father of an illegitimate child.
{Putative father}, one who is presumed to be the father of an illegitimate child; the supposed father.
{Spiritual father}. (a) A religious teacher or guide, esp. one instrumental in leading a soul to God. (b) (R. C. Ch.) A priest who hears confession in the sacrament of penance.
{The Holy Father} (R. C. Ch.), the pope. [1913 Webster]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.
