Synonyms & related words for paternal

Find synonyms, related words, and the definition of paternal — including fatherlike, maternal, parental, fatherly, motherlike, motherly. Dendril is a free visual thesaurus that shows them on an interactive map where stronger matches sit closer to the center — no signup, no ads.

Words related to paternal

Explore words related to paternal — words associated with it, words that go with it, and its nearest matches in meaning. Related words include daddyish, paternally, fatherliness, unfatherly, patriclinous, agnatic, maternalistic, nonmaternal. Click any word to make it the center of the map and keep exploring the web of connections.

Synonyms for paternal

Common synonyms for paternal include fatherlike, maternal, parental, fatherly, motherlike, motherly, grandparental, patrilateral — words that share a close meaning. Hover or tap any word on the map for its definition and part of speech.

Where does paternal come from?

The word paternal breaks down into one root of Latin origin: the root patr-, from Latin pater (“father”). Explore each root to see other English words built from the same source.