godparent
Americannoun
noun
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012Usage
What does godparent mean? A godparent is a person who has pledged to help with the upbringing of a child, especially in a religious way.In some denominations of Christianity, when a child is baptized, they are sponsored by (usually two) adults who pledge to help in this way. Those adults are the child’s godparents, and the child is their godchild.Godparents are often related to their godchildren (an aunt might be her nephew’s godmother, for example), but they don’t need to be.Godparents also often pledge to become the godchild’s guardian if needed (in the event that the child’s parents die).These terms are all sometimes applied outside of a religious context—parents may choose close relatives or friends to act as godparents for their children without any religious aspect to the relationship.A godparent can still refer to their godchild with that term even after the child becomes an adult.Example: Some people are godparents in name only, but Kelly and Chris spend as much time as they can with their godchildren.
Etymology
Origin of godparent
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.
Barnes said her godparents were, “instrumental in building this whole community.”
From Los Angeles Times
"It was significant that he said trans men and women could be godparents."
From BBC
She recounted growing close with Baldenebro, and said he had suggested he could become her “godparent,” according to an amended lawsuit filed in the case.
From Los Angeles Times
She said she was convinced by the daughter of one of her godparents to travel to Indonesia to start a new job as a maid.
From BBC
If the new breed of outdoor magazines had a family tree, The Surfer’s Journal might be the parents, maybe the godparents.
From New York Times
Definitions 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.
