paterfamilias
noun
Forms paterfamiliases patresfamilias pater familias
Synonyms
Etymology
(c. 1425 to 1475) From late Middle English paterfamilias, from Latin pater familiās. From Latin pater (“father”) + familiās, archaic genitive of familia (“family; household”). Literally, "father of the family" or "father of the household".
Webster’s 1913
- noun The head of a family; in a large sense, the proprietor of an estate; one who is his own master.
Etymology [L., fr. pater father + familias, gen. of familia family.]
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “paterfamilias”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details