padre

noun

pa·​dre ˈpä-(ˌ)drā How to pronounce padre (audio) -drē How to pronounce padre (audio)
Synonyms of padrenext
1
: a Christian clergyman
especially : priest
2
: a military chaplain

Examples of padre in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
The group has since evolved to the comité de padres and grown to roughly 30 mothers. —Mathew Miranda, Sacramento Bee, 18 Apr. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Spanish or Italian or Portuguese, literally, father, from Latin pater — more at father

First Known Use

1584, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of padre was in 1584

Dictionary Entries Near padre

padouk

padre

Padre Island

See More Nearby Entries 

Cite this Entry

“Padre.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/padre. Accessed 17 Nov. 2024.

Copy Citation

Share

Kids Definition

padre

noun
pa·​dre ˈpäd-rā How to pronounce padre (audio) -rē How to pronounce padre (audio)
1
: priest
2
: a military chaplain
Etymology

from Spanish or Italian or Portuguese padre "priest," literally, "father," all from Latin pater "father" — related to paternal, patron, pattern

More from Merriam-Webster on padre

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for padre

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See All

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Plural and Possessive Names: A Guide

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See All

Popular in Wordplay

See All

8 Words with Fascinating Histories

8 Words for Lesser-Known Musical Instruments

Birds Say the Darndest Things

10 Words from Taylor Swift Songs (Merriam's Version)

10 Scrabble Words Without Any Vowels
See All

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Word Game Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
silhouette of a man with a megaphone against a british flag
Another Great British Vocabulary Quiz, Innit? A double-decker quiz with words from across the pond