paterfamilias

American  

[pey-ter-fuh-mil-ee-uhs, pah-, pat-er-] / ˌpeɪ tər fəˈmɪl i əs, ˌpɑ-, ˌpæt ər- /

noun

plural

paterfamiliases, patresfamilias

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

2. Roman Law.

   1. the head of the Roman family; a juridical entity who holds the patria potestas.

   2. a person who is not under the patria potestas of another.

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paterfamilias British  

/ ˌpeɪtəfəˈmɪlɪˌæs /

noun

1. the male head of a household

2. Roman law

   1. the head of a household having authority over its members

   2. the parental or other authority of another person

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Other Word Forms

• paterfamiliar adjective
• paterfamiliarly adverb

Etymology

Origin of paterfamilias

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

Example Sentences

Burden internalized this pattern, of foregrounding the importance of the paterfamilias at the expense of real intimacy, of keeping up appearances despite the private pain.

From Los Angeles Times

Mr. Junod’s “In the Days of My Youth I Was Told What It Means to Be a Man” is one of the great literary tributes to a complex paterfamilias in recent memory.

From The Wall Street Journal

He believes that this number accounts for roughly 3,000 individuals, because in many cases it was only the paterfamilias who was recorded in inscriptions.

From The Wall Street Journal

Ms. Cheever began to understand that his stories came at least partly from the tension between his private feelings of shame and the effort to maintain his respectability as a literary grandee and paterfamilias.

From The Wall Street Journal

He walked on stage, now the proud paterfamilias with greying hair and a broad welcoming smile on his face as he surveyed the nearly full house.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• elder
• founder
• grandfather
• ruler