paterfamilias

[pey-ter-fuh-mil-ee-uh s, pah-, pat-er-]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR paterfamilias ON THESAURUS.COM

noun, plural pa·ter·fa·mil·i·as·es for 1, pa·tres·fa·mil·i·as [pey-treez-fuh-mil-ee-uh s, pah-, pa-] /ˌpeɪ triz fəˈmɪl i əs, ˌpɑ-, ˌpæ-/ for 2.

the male head of a household or family, usually the father.

Roman Law.

the head of the Roman family; a juridical entity who holds the patria potestas.
a person who is not under the patria potestas of another.

Origin of paterfamilias

1425–75; late Middle English < Latin: literally, father (i.e., master) of the household, with archaic genitive form familiās of familia; see family

Related formspa·ter·fa·mil·iar, adjectivepa·ter·fa·mil·iar·ly, adverb

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for paterfamilias

elder, ruler, founder, grandfather, originator, head, author, generator, sire, father, chief, master, architect, senior, ancestor, creator, maker, inventor, gaffer, graybeard

Examples from the Web for paterfamilias

Contemporary Examples of paterfamilias

Motilal, the Nehru paterfamilias, had his suits made in Savile Row.
Hold Onto Your Penis
David Frum, Justin Green
November 29, 2012

Historical Examples of paterfamilias

Mr. Schmuck was an excellent "paterfamilias," and took great care of children.
Debts of Honor
Maurus Jkai
It is the distribution that must be looked to; it is the paterfamilias that is wanting in the State.
Crotchet Castle
Thomas Love Peacock
Well,” said I, “it was either the Lewis gun or Paterfamilias the grim.
Great Britain at War
Jeffery Farnol
This self-indulgence on your part, my dear Paterfamilias, is weak, vain—not to say culpable.
Roundabout Papers
William Makepeace Thackeray
It is the first labour of every governing man, from Paterfamilias to Dominus Rex.
Past and Present
Thomas Carlyle

British Dictionary definitions for paterfamilias

paterfamilias

noun plural patresfamilias (ˌpɑːtreɪzfəˈmɪlɪˌæs)

the male head of a household

Roman law

the head of a household having authority over its members
the parental or other authority of another person

Word Origin for paterfamilias

Latin: father of the family

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for paterfamilias

early 15c., from Latin pater familias "master of a house, head of a family," from pater "father" (see father (n.)) + familias, old genitive of familia "family" (see family).