paterfamilias

pa·ter·fa·mil·i·as

P0109500 (pā′tər-fə-mĭl′ē-əs, pä′-, păt′ər-)n. pl. pa·tres·fa·mil·i·as (pā′trēz-, pä′-, păt′rēz-) A man who is the head of a household or the father of a family.

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[Latin paterfamiliās : pater, father; see pater + familiās, archaic genitive of familia, family; see family.]

paterfamilias

(ˌpeɪtəfəˈmɪlɪˌæs) n, pl patresfamilias (ˌpɑːtreɪzfəˈmɪlɪˌæs) 1. the male head of a household2. (Law) Roman law a. the head of a household having authority over its membersb. the parental or other authority of another person[Latin: father of the family]

pa•ter•fa•mil•i•as

(ˌpeɪ tər fəˈmɪl i əs, ˌpɑ-, ˌpæt ər-)

n. the male head of a household or family, usu. the father. [1425–75; < Latin: literally, father of the household, with archaic genitive familiās of familia family]

Thesaurus

Noun

1.

paterfamilias - the male head of family or tribe patriarchhead of household - the head of a household or family or tribeadult male, man - an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman); "there were two women and six men on the bus"

Translations