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paternal |
2 definitions found From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]: Paternal \Pa*ter"nal\, a. [L. paternus fr pater a father: cf F. paternel. See {Father}.] 1. Of or pertaining to a father; fatherly; showing the disposition of a father; guiding or instructing as a father; as paternal care ``Under paternal rule.'' --Milton. 2. Received or derived from a father; hereditary; as a paternal estate. Their small paternal field of corn. --Dryden. {Paternal government} (Polit. Science), the assumption by the governing power of a quasi-fatherly relation to the people, involving strict and intimate supervision of their business and social concerns, upon the theory that they are incapable of managing their own afffairs. From WordNet r 1.6 [wn]: paternal adj 1: belonging to or inherited from one's father; "spent his childhood on the paternal farm"; "paternal traits" 2: characteristic of a father [ant: {maternal}] 3: relating to or characteristic of or befitting a parent; "parental guidance" [syn: {parental}, {maternal}] [ant: {filial}] 4: related on the father's side "a paternal aunt" [syn: {agnate}, {agnatic}, {paternal(p)}]
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