son
noun
a male child or person in relation to his parents.
son
1 American
[suhn]
/ sʌn /
noun
sons
plural
-
a male child or person in relation to his parents.
-
a male child or person adopted as a son; a person in the legal position of a son.
-
any male descendant.
a son of the Aztecs.
-
a son-in-law.
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a person related as if by ties of sonship.
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a male person looked upon as the product or result of particular agencies, forces, influences, etc..
a true son of the soil.
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a familiar term of address to a man or boy from an older person, an ecclesiastic, etc.
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the Son, the second person of the Trinity; Jesus Christ.
son-
2
American
son
1
British
/ sʌn /
noun
-
a male offspring; a boy or man in relation to his parents
-
a male descendant
-
(often capital) a familiar term of address for a boy or man
-
a male from a certain country, place, etc, or one closely connected with a certain environment
a son of the circus
a son of the manse
Son
2
British
/ sʌn /
noun
son
Idioms
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of son
before 900; Middle English sone, Old English sunu; cognate with Dutch zoon, German Sohn, Old Norse sunr, sonr, Gothic sunus, Lithuanian sūnùs, Sanskrit sūnus; akin to Greek huiós
Explanation
Anyone can call a boy son, but technically, your son has to be your male child. If you're male, you are your parents' son. Well done, son! You can use the noun son for non-human animals too: "Our cat had six kittens, five daughters and one son." But it's far more likely that you'll describe human offspring as sons or daughters. Family names (or surnames) in many cultures include son or son of, like "Jefferson" or "Wilson," originally "son of Jeffrey" and "son of William."
Vocabulary lists containing son
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.
A South Korean loss combined with a Czech victory over Mexico would knock LAFC’s Son Heung-min and his South Korea teammates out of the tournament.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 24, 2026
Speaking at an annual shareholder meeting in Tokyo on Wednesday, Son acknowledged the ambition of the 1,000 trillion yen goal but said SoftBank has consistently proven its ability to create value.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 24, 2026
Son Jamie added: "I think Boston would've felt more like a football trip, where as this feels like a holiday with a football game during it."
From BBC • Jun. 23, 2026
“It should be painted over,” Son replied when I asked what should happen to the mural.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 19, 2026
Wearing an old felt hat and dirty overalls, Son sat sideways, slumped, with one leg crossed over the mule’s shoulder and the other hanging loose.
From "Cold Sassy Tree" by Olive Ann Burns
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.
