fatherhood
Americannoun
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the state of being a father.
-
fathers collectively.
-
the qualities or spirit of a father.
noun
Usage
What does fatherhood mean? Fatherhood is the state of being a father. A person enters fatherhood when they become a father. This most commonly happens when their child is born, but it can also happen through adoption or by marrying or becoming a partner to someone with children. Fatherhood is a gender-specific version of the term parenthood. Less commonly, fatherhood can refer to all fathers collectively, as in You won’t find a better dad in all of fatherhood. Example: People who have not experienced fatherhood probably shouldn’t be so quick to criticize how dads parent their children.
Etymology
Origin of fatherhood
1350–1400; late Middle English faderhode; replacing Middle English faderheed. See father, -hood
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.
If he survives the rampaging zombies, there’s a major life change on the horizon: His girlfriend has recently told him she is pregnant, and he’s skeptical about the potential of fatherhood.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026
“I don’t know if there is a secret,” he told People magazine about of his views on fatherhood.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 1, 2026
He adopted a kinder, more family-friendly public persona while also embracing fatherhood - he has three children via surrogacy.
From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026
He spends chapters meditating on trauma and fatherhood, on periods of feeling spiritually adrift, on coming to love a “majestic” faith tradition while remaining connected to the rowdy evangelicals of his childhood.
From Slate ● Jun. 18, 2026
You have seen in this conversation that the struggle has ruptured and remade me several times over—in Baltimore, at The Mecca, in fatherhood, in New York.
From "Between the World and Me" by Ta-Nehisi Coates
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
