fraternal
Americanadjective
-
of or befitting a brother or brothers; brotherly.
-
of or being a society of men associated in brotherly union, as for mutual aid or benefit.
a fraternal order; a fraternal association.
adjective
-
of or suitable to a brother; brotherly
-
of or relating to a fraternity
-
designating either or both of a pair of twins of the same or opposite sex that developed from two separate fertilized ova Compare identical
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of fraternal
1375–1425; late Middle English < Latin frātern ( us ) fraternal (derivative of frāter brother ) + -al 1
Compare meaning
How does fraternal compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
Use the adjective fraternal to mean "brotherly," the way you'd describe your fraternal relationship with your oldest friend who is like a brother to you. A fight between brothers? You could chalk it up to fraternal rivalry. Fraternal describes the relationship between brothers, but it is also used is to describe a club, society or fraternity, some brotherly group of people — usually men — with common interests. Fraternal twins, unlike identical twins, are formed from separate ova. That's why they don't look exactly alike and can be a girl and a boy, instead of two girls or two boys.
Vocabulary lists containing fraternal
Lincoln Inaugural Address (March 1861)
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Vocabulary from Vladimir Putin's Speech on Crimea
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Max in the House of Spies
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
The Oguntoyes have some physical differences, being fraternal twins, but their wives are identical.
From BBC • Jun. 22, 2026
In the rebuilding of Jerusalem, diverse people worked together to rebuild the ruined walls and established a fraternal coexistence within them, he added.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 25, 2026
Roughly half of the participants were identical twins, who share all of their genes, while the others were fraternal twins, who share about half.
From Science Daily • May 6, 2026
Notaro lives near Hollywood with her wife, actor Stephanie Allynne, their 9-year-old fraternal twin boys, Max and Finn, and three cats, Fluff, Linus and Skip.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 24, 2026
I wondered if the fact that he was not drinking helped to set him off from his guests, for it seemed to me that he grew more correct as the fraternal hilarity increased.
From " The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald
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.
