Etymologically
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parenthood

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 31 October 2026 at 11:09. This address is a permanent link to this version.
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Pronunciation

  • /ˈpɛːɹənthʊd/[1]

Etymology

It is formed from English parent + -hood.[2][3][4][5] Parent is from Old French parent (“father, parent, relative”) and parēns (“father or mother, ancestor”), the present participle of pariō (“to bring forth, give birth to”);[3] -hood is from Old English -hād (“condition, quality, position”).[3] The OED notes the earlier words of similar meaning parentage, parentality, parentdom and parentship.[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

The state or condition of being a parent; fatherhood or motherhood: 1853, in Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine.[2][6]

Semantic evolution

The word has kept its first meaning.[2][4] Older dictionaries dated it to 1856[3][7] or to 1855–60;[5] the revised OED and Merriam-Webster Unabridged have found it in 1853.[2][6] Merriam-Webster also uses it for the position, function or standing of a parent.[6]

Timeline

  • 1853 – the state of being a parent.[2][6]
  • 1856 – first date given by Etymonline and the first edition of the OED.[3][7]

Meanings

Noun

  1. The state of being a parent; fatherhood or motherhood: Parenthood changed his priorities.[2][4][6]
  2. The position, role or responsibilities of a parent.[6]

Word family

  • nonparenthood

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b c Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  5. ^ a b Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
  6. ^ a b c d e f Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  7. ^ a b Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press