son
noun
a male child or person in relation to his parents.
Showing results for son.
Search instead for
sones.
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.
-
a person related as if by ties of sonship.
-
a male person looked upon as the product or result of particular agencies, forces, influences, etc..
a true son of the soil.
-
a familiar term of address to a man or boy from an older person, an ecclesiastic, etc.
-
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.
See Examples For:
I even mentioned it to my 26-year-old son.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
She’s been sober for 20 years, she writes, remarried and now has a son with her second husband.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026
Stacey Foster and her partner Peter Cooke had jewellery made from the ashes of their son Tommy, who they lost at just over 17 weeks in August 2023, the prosecution said.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
Her son Byron Lill broke down several times as he read out a statement to the court about the impact it had had on him.
From Barron's ● Jul. 27, 2026
Kate had accurately chosen the names of Partridge’s deceased son, brother, and cousin from a long list of other names.
From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock
Be careful there son- the last time I let a fan put themself in my shoes, they just took off running & sold them on Ebay.
From BBC ● Jun. 13, 2018
There was Joseph Manley, son- in-law and arch-disciple of Foster.
From Time Magazine Archive
And then she pointed her crab leg toward her future son- in-law, Rich, and said, “See how this one doesn’t know how to eat Chinese food.”
From "The Joy Luck Club" by Amy Tan
It is the voice I hear even now when my mother addresses her son- or daughter-in-law.
From "Hunger of Memory" by Richard Rodriguez
It's one thing to like Mr. Egerton very well as a visitor—quite another to accept him as a son- in-law.
From Milly Darrell and Other Tales by Braddon, M. E. (Mary Elizabeth)
The Son, as they say, will come out tomorrow.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 18, 2026
Just as life came through Pachamama, they believed, Mary was chosen by God as the mother through whom he sent his Son, who gave humanity the path to eternal life.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026
If regular wings just don’t cut it, Joe Jurgielewicz & Son Duck Wings come in a 30-pack that’s made for a crowd.
From Salon ● Jul. 12, 2026
Singer J-Hope added that it was an "honour" to be playing in the same stadium where South Korean captain Son "Sonny" Heung-min made his name.
From BBC ● Jul. 7, 2026
“I betcher Son Black’s madder’n a wet hen, losin’ Miss Love to a old man.”
From "Cold Sassy Tree" by Olive Ann Burns
The Washington Post reported that Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, the president’s eldest sons, have a portfolio of tech companies that are raking in billions from the Pentagon.
From Salon ● Jul. 26, 2026
As much as I knew my sons needed me, I was racked by survivor’s guilt.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026
Birmingham is marking a year since the death of Ozzy Osbourne with a day of music and celebration, affectionately called "Ozzy Day", to commemorate the passing of one of its most beloved sons.
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
The video prominently featured Zach Witkoff and two of the president’s sons, Don Jr. and Eric, extolling the success of their company.
From Slate ● Jul. 22, 2026
“The old man tried to train his sons, but neither one was as good as he was.”
From "Rickshaw Girl" by Mitali Perkins
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.
