LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
noun · masculinethird declension

pater

pater m (genitive patris)
Classical[ˈpa.tɛr]Ecclesiastical[ˈpaː.ter]
№ 71 of the 1,000 commonest wordsMille Verba core vocabulary

Meaning

  1. masculinefather (male parent)
  2. masculinehead of household
  3. masculineparent
  4. masculineforefather
  5. masculinepriest
  6. masculinehonorific title

Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers

vir, quī līberōs habet; pater familiās tōtī domuī imperat.
pater -tris m — in Mille Verba, Domus et Familia
a father
pater — in Seneca, ch. XX

Declension

declension
formsingularplural
nominativepaterpatrēs
genitivepatrispatrum
dativepatrīpatribus
accusativepatrempatrēs
ablativepatrepatribus
vocativepaterpatrēs

Phrases from Meissner's Latin Phrase-Book

exheredari a patre
to be disinherited.
patre, (e) matre natus
son of such and such a father, mother.
memoria patrum nostrorum
in our fathers' time.
patres (senatum) consulere de aliqua re (Sall. Iug. 28)
to consult the senators on a matter.
pater optime or carissime, mi pater (vid. sect. XII. 10)
my dear father.

păter, tris (old
I. gen PATRVS. Inscr Corp. Lat. 1469; dat PATRE, ib 182), m. Sanscr. root pā, to nourish, protect; Lat. pasco; hence, Zend, patar, protector; Gr. πατηρ; Sanscr pitri; Engl. father; Germ. Vater, a father, sire.
I. Lit. Aes. Ehem, pater mi, tu hic eras? De Tuus hercle vero et animo et patura pater, Ter. Ad. 5, 7, 3: patre certo nasci, Cic. Rosc. Am. 16, 46: Servius Tullius captivā Corniculanā natus, patre nullo, matre servā, i. e. by an unknown father, Liv. 4, 3: SI PATER FILIVM TER VENVM DVIT FILIVS A PATRE LIBER ESTO, Lex XII. Tab.: CORNELIVS SCIPIO BARBATVS GNAIVOD PATRE PROGNATVS, Epit. of the Scipios: ego a patre ita eram deductus, by my father, Cic. Lael. 1, 1: aliquem patris loco colere debere, id. Phil. 2, 38, 99.—
II. Transf.
A. The father as head and rep resentative of the household, esp., paterfamilias and paterfamiliae: pauci milites patresque familiae recepti, Caes. B. C. 2, 44: quemeunque patrem familiae arripuissetis, Cic. de Or. 1, 43; v. familia.—
B. In plur.: patres, fathers, forefathers: patrum nostrorum aetas, Cic. Or. 5, 18: memoria patrum, id. de Or. 1, 40, 181: apud patres nostros, id. Off. 3, 11, 47: patres majoresque nostri, id. Div. in Caecil. 21, 69: Dominus Deus patrum vestrorum, Vulg Exod 3, 15: descenderunt patres tui in Aegyptum, id. Deut. 10, 22.—So in sing (eccl. Lat.): dixitque Jacob; Deus patris mei Abraham, etc., Vulg. Gen. 32, 9: quod juravit ad Abra. ham patrem nostrūm, id. Luc. 1, 73.—
C. PATRES for parentes, parents, Inscr. Grut. 707, 5; 656, 2; 692, 1; 704, 1.—
D. As a title of honor, father.—Of a deity, esp. of Jupiter: divum pater atque hominum rex, Enn. ap. Macr. S. 6, 1 (Ann. v. 179 Vahl.); cf.: pater optime Olimpi, id. ap. Oros. 6, 1 (Ann. v. 198 ib.): ipse pater mediā nimborum in nocte coruscā Fulmina molitur dextrā, Verg. G. 1, 328: Gradivumque patrem Geticis qui praesidet arvis, id. A. 3, 35: pater Lemnius, i. e. Vulcan, id. ib. 8, 454: Bacche pater, Hor. C. 3, 3, 13; cf. Lenaeus, i. e. Bacchus, Verg. G. 2, 7: pater Silvane, Hor. Epod. 2, 21: Quirine pater, Enn. ap. Non. 120, 1 (Ann. v. 121 Vahl.): pater Tiberine, id. ap. Macr. S. 6, 1 (Ann. v. 55 ib.); of the Tiber, Liv. 2, 10: Apenninus, Verg. A. 12, 703 Wagner: pater Aeneas, id. ib. 1, 699.—Of the creative or generative powers of nature as deities: pater Aether, Lucr. 1, 250: aequoreus, i. e. Ocean, Col. poët. 10, 200.—As an honorable designation applied to senators: principes, qui appellati sunt propter caritatem patres, Cic. Rep. 2, 8, 14: patres ab honore patriciique progenies eorum appellati, Liv. 1, 8.—Hence, patres = patricii, opp. to plebeii: quā re ad patres censeo revertare: plebeii quam fuerint importuni, vides, Cic. Fam. 9, 21, 3 fin.: patres conscripti, v. conscribo: pater patrum, pater sacrorum, pater nomimus, the title given to the high-priest of Mithras, Inscr. Grut. 28, 2; 315, 5; 1102, 2; Inscr. Orell. 5059: patratus, v. h. v. under patro, P. a.—Of the founder of a school: Zeno, pater Stoicorum, Cic. N. D. 3, 9, 23; of a teacher, as a source or creator: Isocrates pater eloquentiae, Cic. de Or. 2, 3, 10: Herodotus pater historiae, id. Leg. 1, 1, 5: pater patriae, the father of his country, of Cicero, Cic. Pis. 3, 6: quem Q. Catulus, quem multi alii saepe in senatu patrem patriae nominarant, id. Sest. 57, 121; cf.: Roma patrem patriae Ciceronem libera dixit, Juv. 8, 245.—So of Marius: C. Marium quem vere patrem patriae ... possumus dicere, Cic. Rab. Perd. 10, 27; of Trajan, and other emperors: at tu etiam nomen patris patriae recusabas, Plin. Pan. 21; cf. Sen. Clem. 1, 14, 2; Suet. Caes. 76; id. Tib. 26; id. Ner. 8; cf. also: pater senatūs, Tac. A. 11, 25; Ov. F. 2, 127; id. Tr. 2, 39; 181; id. P. 1, 1, 36: pater orbis, id. F. 3, 72; Stat. S. 1, 4, 95; 4, 8, 20.—As a term of respect: pater Aeneas, Verg. A. 5, 348; esp., to an old man, Plaut. Most. 4, 2, 36; Verg. A. 5, 521; so id. ib. 533.—
E. In eccl. Lat., the Supreme Being, God: sicut enim Pater habet vitam in semet ipso, Vulg. Joan. 5, 26: confiteor tibi, Pater Domine caeli et terrae, id. Luc. 10, 21: Pater caelestis, id. Matt. 5, 48; 18, 35: Pater vester qui in caelis est, id. ib. 23, 9: Pater noster, qui es in caelis, id. ib. 6, 9: adorabunt Patrem, id. Joan. 4, 23; id. Act. 1, 7 saep.—*
F. Pater cenae, the host, Hor. S. 2, 8, 7: misericordiarum, Vulg. 2 Cor. 1, 3. —Hence, by way of opposition, *
G. Pater esuritionum, the father of hunger-pains, said of a very poor man who suffers from hunger, Cat. 21, 1.—
H. Of animals, sire: virque paterque gregis, Ov. A. A. 1, 522; Petr. 133 fin.; Col. 6, 37, 4.

Origins

  1. Proto-Indo-European*peh₂-?
  2. Proto-Indo-European*ph₂tḗr
  3. Proto-Italic*patēr
  4. Latinpater

From Proto-Italic *patēr, from Proto-Indo-European *ph₂tḗr. As a titular suffix, shares cognate roots with Old Latin Diēspiter (“Father Jove”), Latin Iuppiter (“Jupiter”).

Western Romance
  • Frenchpèrefrom Old French pere
  • Portuguesepadrefrom Old Galician-Portuguese padre
  • Portuguesepaifrom Old Galician-Portuguese pay
  • Spanishpadrefrom Old Spanish padre
  • Englishpadrefrom Old Spanish padre
  • Spanishpairefrom Old Spanish padre
  • Occitanpairefrom Old Occitan paire
  • Catalanparefrom Old Occitan paire
  • Emilianpèder
  • Emilianpär
Italo-Romance
  • Italianpadrefrom Old Italian patre
  • Englishpadrefrom Old Italian patre
  • Neapolitanpate
  • Judeo-Italianפַאטֵירוֹfrom Old Italian patre
  • Sicilianpatri
Elsewhere
  • Englishpater
  • Romanianpater
  • Dutchpater
  • Tok Pisinpaterfrom English pater
  • Welshpader

Quick answers

What does pater mean in Latin?
pater, a noun, means “father (male parent); head of household; parent”.
What is the genitive of pater?
The genitive singular is patris. pater is masculine, third declension.
How do you pronounce pater?
In classical Latin, [ˈpa.tɛr]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [ˈpaː.ter].
Where does pater come from?
Proto-Indo-European *peh₂-? → Proto-Indo-European *ph₂tḗr → Proto-Italic *patēr → Latin pater.