How to Use paternal in a Sentence

paternal

adjective
  • He did not neglect his paternal responsibilities after the divorce.
  • He’s talked about how important the series and the paternal bond were to him many times over the years.
    Kory Grow, Rolling Stone, 8 Sep. 2023
  • His paternal grandfather, George, served as mayor of Franklin Township, in the middle of the state, in the 1960s.
    Clay Risen, New York Times, 12 Jan. 2023
  • Though the mild-mannered Hunt played a paternal role, the Super Bowl wasn’t conceived out of love, but, rather, war.
    Brad Townsend, Dallas News, 5 June 2023
  • Chaos is created, and then the paternal detective finds the truth and solves it all.
    David Sims, The Atlantic, 26 Dec. 2022
  • Hale is the daughter of Meghan's paternal half-sister, Samantha Markle, who shares the same father as the duchess.
    Sabrina Park, Harper's BAZAAR, 14 Dec. 2022
  • The law was the first major challenge to the paternal presumption.
    Patricia Fersch, Forbes, 4 May 2021
  • As Ledecky's paternal uncle, the swimmer is a proud fan of the pro hockey team, while her uncle is a fan of hers.
    Skyler Caruso, Peoplemag, 21 June 2024
  • And Hank was buried on top of his paternal uncle, who died at age 26 in a car accident.
    Gina Kolata Kim Raff, New York Times, 28 Mar. 2024
  • At the cocktail reception, which took place on the ground floor, Wyden gaped at the portraits of her paternal line that decorate the walls.
    André-Naquian Wheeler, Vogue, 9 Sep. 2022
  • Alasia has two sons, a five year old and a three year old, who live with their paternal grandparents.
    Andrea Cavallier, NBC News, 3 May 2021
  • Adding to the intrigue is the fact that Peacock’s paternal grandmother also was a Shields.
    Bob Carlton | Bcarlton@al.com, al, 28 Apr. 2022
  • Meanwhile, her reunion with the paternal side of the family is rife with culture shock.
    Odie Henderson, BostonGlobe.com, 2 Mar. 2023
  • Even the name, Yasmine, is a nod to Haddad’s paternal grandmother, who still lives in a small village in the mountains above Tripoli.
    Tim Carman, Washington Post, 13 Feb. 2023
  • Blu's paternal grandmother, Karen Rolland, 57, said the boy would have turned 6 last week.
    Julianne McShane, NBC News, 23 Dec. 2022
  • But, when Hicks made that crack about Cohen, his mouth broke out into a crooked little paternal smile.
    Eric Lach, The New Yorker, 4 May 2024
  • At the time, Balti was just a few years shy of 39, the age at which one of her paternal aunts had died from an extremely aggressive form of breast cancer.
    Margaux Anbouba, Vogue, 19 Mar. 2024
  • His instinct, almost more than just as a soldier and a leader, but as a paternal being, is to help this kid.
    Dalton Ross, EW.com, 4 May 2021
  • That was all nice and spicy, but for me as a person, as a woman, to go your entire life up to 38 years old and not even know the name of your whole paternal identity.
    Breanna Bell, Variety, 11 Sep. 2023
  • But a time came when such proud declarations about his son had to come from a paternal perspective, not one of a coach.
    Jon Meoli, baltimoresun.com, 20 June 2021
  • His paternal grandfather worked there for one decade, not two.
    New York Times, 27 Sep. 2023
  • When Shaw was just 3 months old, his parents left him with his paternal grandmother, who lived 20 miles away.
    Christina Zdanowicz, CNN, 1 May 2021
  • Her carne asada recipe is a hand-me-down from her paternal grandmother, with whom Padilla lived as a girl.
    Washington Post, 15 June 2022
  • Yet, in the early years, paternal favoritism perhaps encouraged Anne’s refusal to bow to the heir.
    Simon Usborne, Town & Country, 18 Jan. 2023
  • My paternal grandfather owned a butcher and deli shop and my father worked with him.
    Linda Chase, Sun Sentinel, 15 July 2024
  • My daughter was welcomed by her paternal grandparents, but I was told there was no space for me.
    Elisabet Velasquez, refinery29.com, 15 Sep. 2022
  • Others had been gone for years, like her paternal grandfather, who was killed in 1941 at the beginning of the second World War.
    Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 13 Mar. 2022
  • The actress’s paternal great-grandfather, Tim Mara, founded the team in 1925.
    Erica Marrison, Peoplemag, 7 May 2024
  • Secrets such as your paternal grandmother was raped by your great-great-uncle.
    Lori Gottlieb, The Atlantic, 29 July 2024
  • He was named after his paternal grandfather, Henry Abraham Lipowitz, who died when his own father was just a child.
    Katie Mannion, People.com, 12 Oct. 2024

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'paternal.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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