daddy
Americannoun
-
daddies
plural
-
Informal. a diminutive of dad.
-
Slang. sugar daddy.
-
Slang. an affectionate or familiar term of address to a boyfriend or male romantic partner, especially if he is older.
verb (used with object)
idioms
noun
-
an informal word for father
-
slang the supreme or finest example
the daddy of them all
-
slang the dominant male in a group; boss; top man
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of daddy
Explanation
Daddy is an affectionate nickname for your father. For many babies, daddy is one of the earliest words they learn to speak. Many young children call their fathers daddy, and the word is believed to come from baby talk, or the initial sounds — da da — that a baby or toddler tends to make when she's first learning to speak. It's less common for a grown person to call her dad daddy, although some people use the childish nickname throughout their lives.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
“Your daddy is a work in progress, I’m a work in progress,” she sighs.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026
Gabe, 32, an artist, drag king and costume designer from the West Midlands is the self-styled "daddy of Birmingham drag" and discovered baking after watching the very first series of Bake Off aged 13.
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026
"My mother was a Democrat and my daddy was a Republican, so I’m a hypocrite," she quipped.
From Barron's ● Aug. 25, 2026
“I took off on a horse at 11 years old when my daddy bought me my first one,” she said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026
It means a season of celebration, and that's how me and your daddy felt, like dancing and raising our hands up thanking God for giving us you.
From "Hope Springs" by Jaime Berry
"This is about validating the grief of these mummies and daddies - putting it in stone that this wee person existed," she said.
From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2025
When Miner’s oldest son was in kindergarten, “he came bouncing home one day saying, ‘Mommies can marry mommies, and daddies can marry daddies!’
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 12, 2024
But they’re also doing something many child-free cat ladies and cat daddies can relate to on a scale that suits them – growing food, making butter, harvesting eggs.
From Salon ● Jul. 31, 2024
“I trust mamas, I trust daddies, to deal with the health care of their children.”
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 16, 2023
And daddies didn’t lie to their little girls.
From "Amari and the Night Brothers" by B.B. Alston
With Henry suddenly tired of daddying, the twins melted back into the woods with Wash every chance they got, taking Edgar along for their adventures.
From "Out of Darkness" by Ashley Hope Pérez
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
