parent company

American  

noun

1. a corporation or other business enterprise that owns controlling interests in one or more subsidiary companies (distinguished from holding company).

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parent company British  

noun

1. a company that owns more than half the shares of another company

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Etymology

Origin of parent company

First recorded in 1865–70

Example Sentences

Limited Too became Justice and then Justice’s parent company filed for Chapter 11 in 2020, causing them to shutter over 800 stores by early 2021.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 20, 2026

It prompted a slew of regulatory and legal action against X and its parent company xAI in the UK, EU and around the world.

From BBC • Apr. 20, 2026

A few such groups include the plaintiffs in two tandem lawsuits against Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and Whatsapp, whose jury trials concluded in favor of the plaintiffs March 24 and 25.

From Salon • Apr. 16, 2026

But the Facebook parent company is betting big on its own silicon.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 15, 2026

My team and I persuaded Darden Restaurants, the parent company behind chains like Olive Garden and Red Lobster, to make changes to the kinds of food it offered and how it was prepared.

From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama