dad

noun

ˈdad 

plural dads

informal

: a male parent : father entry 1 sense 1

My mom swam and played soccer, my dad surfed, and my brother played basketball.

—Shannon Griggs

Don't get me wrong, I'm a good dad who maintains a cheerful household and greets parenthood with a smile and an open heart.

—Ron Harris

—often used as a name

When is Dad getting home?

Dad, can you give me a ride?

Synonyms of dad

• father
• daddy

Examples of dad in a Sentence

Her mom and dad both said she can't go.

my dad did most of the cooking for dinner because he usually got home earlier than my mom

Recent Examples on the Web

Vocelle finds criticism that cat dads are seen as feminine, neurotic or less desirable as a relatively modern and unfounded affliction. — Todd Martens, Los Angeles Times, 9 Sep. 2026

Asiata grew up without a dad at home and came to view Whittingham as a father figure. — Austin Meek, New York Times, 9 Sep. 2026

Just a few hours before our call, a dad walked up to him at the meeting. — Alyssa Goldberg, USA Today, 9 Sep. 2026

Crawfish étouffée, the Cajun dish made by his dad, John Jefferson, features crawfish tails in a flavorful, buttery gravy served over rice. — Erin Clements, PEOPLE, 9 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

probably baby talk

First Known Use

1533, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing dad

• dad bod
• dad joke
• deadbeat dad

Rhymes for dad

• ad
• add
• bad
• brad
• cad
• clad
• fad
• gad
• glad
• grad
• had
• lad

Kids Definition

dad

noun

ˈdad 

informal

: father entry 1 sense 1a