fatherless
Americanadjective
-
not having a living father.
a fatherless boy.
-
not having a known or legally responsible father.
adjective
Etymology
Origin of fatherless
before 1000; Middle English faderles, Old English fæderlēas. See father, -less
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.
Seventy percent of teen pregnancies are to girls from fatherless homes.
Christian magazine Charisma further explained that throughout the Bible, “God commands His people to ‘defend the fatherless’ and to care for orphans with compassion, justice and sacrificial love.”
From Salon
Delila Combs, 18, pleaded: "We can't watch our baby sister grow up fatherless the same way we grew up motherless... Please, please give our family the chance to heal."
From BBC
Through his Pearl Fund, he is making a difference in the lives of orphaned, fatherless and poverty-stricken young people.
From BBC
The letter refers to the boy being a fatherless apprentice and through his research Prof Steggle says there was only one person in London called John Butts who fits that criteria.
From BBC
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.
