grandpa
Americannoun
noun
Usage
What does grandpa mean? Grandpa is an informal word for grandfather—the father of a person’s parent.When a father’s child has their own children, that father becomes a grandpa. The word pa is an informal way to say father.Grandpa is often combined with a name, especially when a person has two grandfathers that they call Grandpa, as in Grandpa Carl andGrandpa Frank. Should grandpa be capitalized?Grandpa should be capitalized when it’s used as a proper name, as in Please tell Grandpa that I miss him. But grandpa does not need to be capitalized when it’s simply used as a way to refer to him, as in Please tell my grandpa that I miss him. Example: It doesn’t matter what you call your grandpa, as long as you call him.
Etymology
Origin of grandpa
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.
“That’s what my grandpa was trying to tell me all along,” she said.
From Literature
Greta Norris, the actor's granddaughter, paid tribute to him on social media, revealing that she, too, was aware of her grandpa's status in the internet hall of fame.
From BBC
Although James Watson was my mother's uncle, I always knew him as 'grandpa' and was his namesake.
From BBC
It’s fantastic for some pizza with grandma and grandpa.
From Los Angeles Times
“Are those the monkeys your grandpa was telling me about?” he asked.
From Literature
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.
