son

¹

[suhn]

noun

1. a male child or person in relation to his parents.

2. a male child or person adopted as a son; a person in the legal position of a son.

3. any male descendant.

   a son of the Aztecs.

4. a son-in-law.

5. a person related as if by ties of sonship.

6. a male person looked upon as the product or result of particular agencies, forces, influences, etc..

   a true son of the soil.

7. a familiar term of address to a man or boy from an older person, an ecclesiastic, etc.

8. the Son, the second person of the Trinity; Jesus Christ.

son-

²

1. variant of soni- before a vowel.

   sonance.

son

¹

/ sʌn /

noun

1. a male offspring; a boy or man in relation to his parents

2. a male descendant

3. (often capital) a familiar term of address for a boy or man

4. a male from a certain country, place, etc, or one closely connected with a certain environment

   a son of the circus

   a son of the manse

Son

²

/ sʌn /

noun

1. Christianity the second person of the Trinity, Jesus Christ

Other Word Forms

• sonless adjective
• sonlike adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of son¹

before 900; Middle English sone, Old English sunu; cognate with Dutch zoon, German Sohn, Old Norse sunr, sonr, Gothic sunus, Lithuanian sūnùs, Sanskrit sūnus; akin to Greek huiós

Word History and Origins

Origin of son¹

Old English sunu; related to Old Norse sunr, Gothic sunus, Old High German sunu, Lithuanian sūnus, Sanskrit sūnu

Idioms and Phrases

• favorite son
• like father, like son

Example Sentences

Ms McMillan said the incident was "surreal" and is grateful that her sons, aged 17 and 21, avoided injury.

From BBC

One of the five alleged attackers is the son of a Simi Valley police sergeant, according to department spokesperson Ryan Morton.

From Los Angeles Times

“Anemone” isn’t just a film about family but one made by a father and his son.

From Los Angeles Times

He broke into tears as he turned around to face his family and tell his mother: "I failed you as a son."

From BBC

For a time, the only images of her to emerge were occasional selfies posted by her son Florian on social media, showing her sitting by the sea, beaming at the camera.

From BBC

Related Words

• boy 
• child 
• descendant 
• kid 
• offspring