1
a
: one that begets or brings forth offspring
just became parents of twins
b
: a person who brings up and cares for another
foster parents
2
a
: an animal or plant that is regarded in relation to its offspring
The parent brings food to the chicks.
b
: the material or source from which something is derived
Latin is the parent of several languages.
c
: a group from which another arises and to which it usually remains subsidiary
a parent company
parent
adjective
parented; parenting; parents
: to be or act as a parent
Examples of parent in a Sentence
Noun
My parents live in New York.
The form must be signed by a parent or guardian of the child.
The parent brings food to the chicks.
The new plant will have characteristics of both parent plants.
Recent Examples on the Web
Emma Hinchliffe, Fortune, 9 Apr. 2024
During those clinics, teachers gave students reading assessments and walked parents through the results.
—Silas Allen, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 9 Apr. 2024
This relationship was reflected in the emotional celebrations of the Williams brothers, Iñaki and Nico, who were born in the Basque Country to Ghanaian parents and have experienced the highs and lows – but mostly lows – of playing for Athletic Club together.
—Matias Grez, CNN, 9 Apr. 2024
On the other side, more and more celebs (and non-famous parents) are taking to platforms to showcase their authentic selves, changing the narrative that photos from those aforementioned magazine art directors helped create from newly postpartum cover stars decades ago.
—Beth Ann Mayer, Parents, 9 Apr. 2024
But, increasingly, health issues for parents like diabetes, pre-eclampsia or heart disease (which are far more common in low-income communities) are driving more preterm births.
—Jeremy Ney, TIME, 9 Apr. 2024
In a sentencing memo, Jennifer Crumbley's parents and others pleaded with the court for leniency.
—Quinn Klinefelter, NPR, 9 Apr. 2024
Whether the outcome encourages prosecutors to bring future charges against parents remains to be seen.
—USA TODAY, 9 Apr. 2024
Rumi and Blue Ivy’s parents, Beyoncé and Jay-Z, are of course longstanding hitmakers on Billboard’s charts.
—Xander Zellner, Billboard, 8 Apr. 2024
Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 10 Apr. 2024
Julianne Moore balances her acting career with parenting her two kids, Caleb Moore Freundlich and Liv Helen Moore Freundlich.
—Emy Lacroix, Peoplemag, 8 Apr. 2024
War of the Worlds fuses post-9/11 paranoia and the terror of parenting to create one of Spielberg’s most thrilling blockbusters with a dark, genuinely scary atmosphere of ordinary people being wiped out by incomprehensible tragedy.
—Wesley Stenzel, EW.com, 27 Mar. 2024
But the judge disagreed with this request, considering it an infringement on the father’s right to parent his child, and did not wait for New Hampshire to respond.
—Deborah Sontag, New York Times, 25 Mar. 2024
So people who are parenting through grief are walking a different path.
—Victoria Uwumarogie, Essence, 21 Mar. 2024
However, there is a scene in the first film where Gary and Callie talk about how the husband wasn’t really up for parenting Phoebe.
—Brian Davids, The Hollywood Reporter, 20 Mar. 2024
In October 2023, Chopra told PEOPLE about the challenges she's faced while parenting.
—Jordan Greene, Peoplemag, 26 Mar. 2024
In these videos, Hildebrandt and Franke sit side by side on a couch discussing topics like parenting and offering self-help tips.
—Samantha Wanderer, ABC News, 22 Mar. 2024
Noun
Her parents and their friends were all rocket scientists, part of Russia’s equivalent of the Manhattan Project.
—Emma Hinchliffe, Fortune, 9 Apr. 2024
During those clinics, teachers gave students reading assessments and walked parents through the results.
—Silas Allen, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 9 Apr. 2024
This relationship was reflected in the emotional celebrations of the Williams brothers, Iñaki and Nico, who were born in the Basque Country to Ghanaian parents and have experienced the highs and lows – but mostly lows – of playing for Athletic Club together.
—Matias Grez, CNN, 9 Apr. 2024
On the other side, more and more celebs (and non-famous parents) are taking to platforms to showcase their authentic selves, changing the narrative that photos from those aforementioned magazine art directors helped create from newly postpartum cover stars decades ago.
—Beth Ann Mayer, Parents, 9 Apr. 2024
But, increasingly, health issues for parents like diabetes, pre-eclampsia or heart disease (which are far more common in low-income communities) are driving more preterm births.
—Jeremy Ney, TIME, 9 Apr. 2024
In a sentencing memo, Jennifer Crumbley's parents and others pleaded with the court for leniency.
—Quinn Klinefelter, NPR, 9 Apr. 2024
Whether the outcome encourages prosecutors to bring future charges against parents remains to be seen.
—USA TODAY, 9 Apr. 2024
Rumi and Blue Ivy’s parents, Beyoncé and Jay-Z, are of course longstanding hitmakers on Billboard’s charts.
—Xander Zellner, Billboard, 8 Apr. 2024
Verb
In 2018, Pusha T lyrically outed Drake as having parented a son out of wedlock.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 10 Apr. 2024
Julianne Moore balances her acting career with parenting her two kids, Caleb Moore Freundlich and Liv Helen Moore Freundlich.
—Emy Lacroix, Peoplemag, 8 Apr. 2024
War of the Worlds fuses post-9/11 paranoia and the terror of parenting to create one of Spielberg’s most thrilling blockbusters with a dark, genuinely scary atmosphere of ordinary people being wiped out by incomprehensible tragedy.
—Wesley Stenzel, EW.com, 27 Mar. 2024
But the judge disagreed with this request, considering it an infringement on the father’s right to parent his child, and did not wait for New Hampshire to respond.
—Deborah Sontag, New York Times, 25 Mar. 2024
So people who are parenting through grief are walking a different path.
—Victoria Uwumarogie, Essence, 21 Mar. 2024
However, there is a scene in the first film where Gary and Callie talk about how the husband wasn’t really up for parenting Phoebe.
—Brian Davids, The Hollywood Reporter, 20 Mar. 2024
In October 2023, Chopra told PEOPLE about the challenges she's faced while parenting.
—Jordan Greene, Peoplemag, 26 Mar. 2024
In these videos, Hildebrandt and Franke sit side by side on a couch discussing topics like parenting and offering self-help tips.
—Samantha Wanderer, ABC News, 22 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'parent.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near parent
Cite this Entry
“Parent.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/parent. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
parent
noun
par·ent
ˈpar-ənt, ˈper- 
1
: one that begets or brings forth offspring
2
: the material or source from which something is derived
parent
adjective
Legal Definition
parent
noun
par·ent
1
a
: a person who begets or brings forth offspring
especially
: the natural parents of a child born of their marriage
b
: a person who legally adopts a child
c
: a person or entity that owes to a child a legally imposed duty of support
d
: a stepparent where designated by statute
2
: an entity or group that gives rise to or acquires another usually subsidiary entity or group
a parent company
specifically
: a corporation that owns a required minimum percentage of the stock of another corporation compare affiliate
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