parenthood

American  

[pair-uhnt-hood, par-] / ˈpɛər əntˌhʊd, ˈpær- /

noun

1. the state, position, or relation of a parent.

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Usage

What does parenthood mean? Parenthood is the state of being a parent. A person enters parenthood when they become a parent. This most commonly happens when their child is born, but it can also happen through adoption or by marrying or becoming a partner to someone with children. The terms motherhood and fatherhood are gender-specific versions of parenthood. The related noun parenting can mean the same thing as parenthood, but it more commonly refers to the process of raising children or the methods and techniques used to do so, as in I didn’t know anything about parenting before I entered parenthood. Example: People who have not experienced parenthood probably shouldn’t be so quick to criticize how other people parent their children.

Other Word Forms

• nonparenthood
  noun

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Etymology

Origin of parenthood

First recorded in 1855–60; parent + -hood

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

parenthood

Deaths surrounding the transition to parenthood often have more to do with social vulnerability than biology, and many of them can be prevented.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 8, 2026

But it felt key to the answer of it, and we were talking so much about parenthood and what you would do for your child and what it means.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 5, 2026

Psychologist Charlotte Armitage shares her advice to help parents cope with this new stage of parenthood:

From BBC ● Sep. 25, 2026

The joy of parenthood is getting to live all those firsts again through your children.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 7, 2026

They had played a similar trick with the instinct of parenthood.

From "1984" by George Orwell

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