surrogate
a person appointed to act for another; deputy.
(in some states) a judicial officer having jurisdiction over the probate of wills, the administration of estates, etc.
the deputy of an ecclesiastical judge, especially of a bishop or a bishop's chancellor.
a substitute.
Politics. someone who acts on behalf of a politician or political candidate by making public appearances, issuing statements, etc., when that person is engaged elsewhere or when that person’s image would be bolstered by certain affiliations: His camp won the “prestige of science” battle by signing on high-profile physicists, chemists, and biologists as campaign surrogates.
regarded or acting as a surrogate: a surrogate father.
involving or indicating the use of a surrogate mother to conceive or carry an embryo: surrogate parenting.
to put into the place of another as a successor, substitute, or deputy; substitute for another.
to subrogate.
Origin of surrogate
1Other words from surrogate
- sur·ro·gate·ship, noun
- sur·ro·ga·tion, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use surrogate in a sentence
She considered serving as a surrogate after learning that the daughter of a co-worker struggled to become pregnant.
A third-grade teacher in Minnesota donated a kidney to her school’s custodian | Kyle Melnick | December 2, 2020 | Washington PostBody temperature serves as a sort of surrogate for basal metabolic rate, or the number of calories required to keep the body working while at rest.
Bolivia’s Tsimane people’s average body temperature fell half a degree in 16 years | Sujata Gupta | November 13, 2020 | Science NewsI know they are willing, but they need to hear from the President and his best surrogates.
The Trailer: Partisan realities clash, again, this time on the vote count | David Weigel | November 5, 2020 | Washington PostHe took me on Soul Train and soon I became like a surrogate son to him.
Soul Brother No. 1 James Brown Endorses Richard Nixon? Believe It | Eugene Robinson | October 19, 2020 | OzyHe took me on Soul Train, and soon I became like a surrogate son to him.
British Dictionary definitions for surrogate
a person or thing acting as a substitute
mainly British a deputy, such as a clergyman appointed to deputize for a bishop in granting marriage licences
psychiatry a person who is a substitute for someone else, esp in childhood when different persons, such as a brother or teacher, can act as substitutes for the parents
(in some US states) a judge with jurisdiction over the probate of wills, etc
(modifier) of, relating to, or acting as a surrogate: a surrogate pleasure
to put in another's position as a deputy, substitute, etc
to appoint as a successor to oneself
Origin of surrogate
1Derived forms of surrogate
- surrogateship, noun
- surrogation, noun
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
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