Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

Date: 1400-1500
Language: Latin
Origin: 'father of a family'

paterfamilias

 noun
     
pa‧ter‧fa‧mil‧ias [countable] formal
a father or a man who is the head of a family
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.

Dictionary pictures of the day
Do you know what each of these is called?
What is the word for picture 1? What is the word for picture 2? What is the word for picture 3? What is the word for picture 4?
Click on any of the pictures above to find out what it is called.

Explore our topic dictionary

Browse the dictionary