pater familias

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See also: paterfamilias

English

Noun

pater familias

  1. Alternative spelling of paterfamilias

Latin

Alternative forms

Etymology

From pater (father) + familiās, an archaic genitive of familia (family", "household), literally meaning "father of the family" or "father of the household".

Pronunciation

Noun

pater familiās m (genitive patris familiās, feminine māter familiās); third declension

  1. head of household

Declension

Third-declension noun.

Descendants

  • French: père de famille (calque)
  • Italian: padrefamiglia;

Italian: padre di famiglia (calque)

Further reading

  • pater familias”, in Harry Thurston Peck, editor (1898), Harper's Dictionary of Classical Antiquities, New York: Harper & Brothers