See Also: Parent(medicine)
parent(dictionary)
parent(dictionary)
Co-parent(health)
parent material(medicine)
single parent(dictionary)
parent artery(medicine)
parent company(dictionary)
one-parent family(dictionary)
birth parent(dictionary)

parent (iou)



parent noun, adjective, & verb. LME.
[Old & mod. French from Latin parent-, parens father or mother (pl. parentes parents, progenitors, kinsfolk), use as noun of pres. pple of parere bring forth: see -ENT.]
A. noun.
A person who has fathered or given birth to a child; a biological father or mother; a person who holds the position or exercises the functions of such a parent, a protector, a guardian. LME.
adoptive parent, biological parent, birth parent, natural parent, etc. single parent: see SINGLE adjective & adverb.
C. Tomalin Most of her childhood meals were eaten with Granny and not with her parents.
b. An animal or plant considered in relation to its offspring. L18.
a. An ancestor, a forefather. LME.
our first parents arch. Adam and Eve.
b. A relative; a kinsman, a kinswoman. LME-L18.
fig.
a. A thing from which another is derived or has its existence; a source, a cause, an origin. L16.
b. Nuclear Physics. A nuclide that becomes transformed into another (daughter) nuclide by radioactive decay. E20.
c. = parent company below. L20.
Accountancy It is quite usual..that a subsidiary's sole asset is a debt owed by its parent.
b. attrib. or as adjective. (Freq. with hyphen.) That is a parent. M17.
Special collocations & comb.: parent cell = mother cell s.v. MOTHER noun1 & adjective. parent-child attrib. adjective of or pertaining to both a parent and a child. parent company a company of which other companies are subsidiaries. parentcraft (knowledge of or skill in) the rearing of children. parent-figure a person regarded or treated as a parent. parent-in-law, pl. parents-in-law, a father-in-law or mother-in-law. parents' day a day on which parents can visit their children's school. parent ship a ship which protects smaller vessels or which acts as a base for ships or aircraft. parents' meeting a meeting of parents with their children's teachers at a school. parent-teacher attrib. adjective of or pertaining to parents and the teachers of their children; parent-teacher association, a local organization of parents and teachers established to promote closer relations and improve educational facilities.
C. verb.
verb trans.
a. Beget, produce. M17.
b. Be or act as a parent to (lit. & fig.); rear (a child). L19.
Times The Suez Canal Company, with its position and its money,..wanting to parent the idea. Listener Many..are most suitable candidates to parent the child in question.
verb intrans. Be a parent; take care of one's children. M20.
Redbook Young men and women can parent..who have had no experience with small children.
parentation noun the performance of the funeral rites of a parent or relative; a memorial service for the dead: E17-E19.
parented adjective (rare) having parents E20.
parenting verbal noun the action of the verb; spec. taking care of one's children: M20.
parentless adjective M16.
parentship noun = PARENTHOOD M19.