parental

IPA/pəˈrentl/
KK[pɚˈɛntəl]IPA/pəˈrentl/

parental — adjective

  • parentalpositive
  • more parentalcomparative
  • most parentalsuperlative

1. describing things that come from a mother or father, or that belong to the role

1.adjectiveB2
Definition

describing things that come from a mother or father, or that belong to the role of being someone's mother or father — for example, the love a parent feels, the rules a parent sets, or the duties a parent carries.

Example

Maya needed parental permission before joining the school trip to Tainan.

parental + abstract noun: permission / consent / approval

Strong parental support helped Marcus finish his first year of medical school.

parental + support / guidance / care

Common collocations
  • parental consent
  • parental approval
  • parental responsibility
  • parental authority
  • parental love
Synonyms
  • fatherly

    specifically male; warmer and more emotional than 'parental'

  • motherly

    specifically female; suggests caring or nurturing behaviour

  • familial

    broader — covers the whole family, not just the parent role

Antonyms
  • filial

    describes the child's side of the relationship, e.g. filial duty

Grammar Patterns

parental + noun

Usage Note

Almost always used before a noun (attributive). Common fixed pairings include parental leave, parental consent, parental control, and parental rights. Avoid using it after a linking verb — say 'her advice was that of a parent', not 'her advice was parental'.

Common Mistakes

My teacher was very parental yesterday.
My teacher acted like a parent yesterday.
'parental' is normally placed before a noun, not after 'be' or 'feel'.
I need my parental signature on this form.
I need my parent's signature on this form.
use the noun 'parent's' for possession; 'parental' describes a type of thing, not ownership.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

All four words touch on family relationships, but they sit in different places. 'Parental' is the neutral, formal label — used for laws, rules, and roles (parental leave, parental consent), and it covers both mother and father. 'Fatherly' and 'motherly' are warmer and more personal: they describe how someone behaves, not just who they are, so a teacher or older friend can act fatherly without being a father. 'Familial' is the widest term, taking in brothers, sisters, cousins, and grandparents as well — useful when you mean the whole family, not just the parent role. Compare: 'parental responsibility' (legal), 'fatherly advice' (warm guidance from any older man), 'motherly hug' (caring physical comfort), 'familial bonds' (ties across the whole family).

parental ↗fatherly ↗motherly ↗familial ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • parental leave
  • parental control
  • in loco parentis

Etymology

LatinEnglish

From Latin 'parentalis', meaning 'of a parent', built on 'parens' (parent), which itself came from the verb 'parere' meaning 'to bring forth' or 'to give birth'. The word entered English in the early 1600s through scholarly Latin, first used in formal writing about family duties and inheritance, and only later spread into everyday use through phrases like parental leave and parental consent in the twentieth century.