maternal
Americanadjective
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of, pertaining to, having the qualities of, or befitting a mother.
maternal instincts.
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related through a mother.
his maternal aunt.
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derived from a mother.
maternal genes.
adjective
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of, relating to, derived from, or characteristic of a mother
-
related through the mother's side of the family
his maternal uncle
Other Word Forms
- maternalism noun
- maternalistic adjective
- maternally adverb
- nonmaternal adjective
- nonmaternally adverb
- quasi-maternal adjective
- quasi-maternally adverb
- unmaternal adjective
- unmaternally adverb
Etymology
Origin of maternal
1475–85; < Medieval Latin māternālis, equivalent to Latin mātern ( us ) ( māter mother 1 + -nus adj. suffix) + -ālis -al 1
Compare meaning
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Grynspan recounted that her parents, who were from Poland, "barely survived" World War II. Her maternal grandparents were killed in the Holocaust.
From Barron's
Holtz's study, "Bringing up baby: preliminary exploration of the effect of ontogenetic niche partitioning in dinosaurs versus long-term maternal care in mammals in their respective ecosystems," was published in the Italian Journal of Geosciences.
From Science Daily
It said the money for Zimbabwe would have gone towards "HIV/Aids treatment and prevention, tuberculosis, malaria, maternal and child health, and disease outbreak preparedness".
From BBC
Until recently, his only comfort was a large orangutan plush toy that some brilliant member of staff gifted him as a tool for muscle building and maternal replacement.
From Los Angeles Times
Gauff says she feels confident giving honest answers when asked about politics, partly because of her maternal grandmother.
From BBC
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
