fatherless
Americanadjective
-
not having a living father.
a fatherless boy.
-
not having a known or legally responsible father.
adjective
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012Etymology
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.
Ushakov had been detained for holding up a sign that read “Peace,” and Prigolovkina, a pregnant ski instructor, feared he would soon be drafted and potentially killed, leaving their baby fatherless.
From Seattle Times
“I see a lot of fatherless children now, and a lot of wives without their husbands,” she said Wednesday.
From Seattle Times
“And this is because the Democrats here won’t allow mothers’ school choice and they won’t allow a discussion on the rate of fatherless homes Black kids are growing up in.”
From Washington Times
Bowers spoke of the impacts of a child growing up in a fatherless home.
From Fox News
This has left behind “a slew of single women and fatherless children whose fathers and partners cannot do anything to be reunited with their families,” she said.
From Reuters
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.
