son

1 of 3

noun (1)

ˈsən 

1

a

: a human male offspring especially of human beings

b

: a male adopted child

c

: a human male descendant

2

Son : the second person of the Trinity

3

: a person closely associated with or deriving from a formative agent (such as a nation, school, or race)

sonhood

ˈsən-ˌhu̇d 

noun

son-

2 of 3

combining form

variants or sono-

: sound

sonic

sonogram

sone

3 of 3

noun (2)

ˈsōn 

: a subjective unit of loudness for an average listener equal to the loudness of a 1000-hertz sound that has an intensity 40 decibels above the listener's own threshold of hearing

Examples of son in a Sentence

Noun (1)

She gave birth to a son.

They have two sons and a daughter.

He is the son of a lawyer and a doctor.

the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Even more horrifying than death was the thought of lying there, trapped beneath the rubble, listening to my two-year-old son desperately crying for help. — Literary Hub, 15 Sep. 2026

Drake said in his lawsuit against UMG that the threats had forced him to pull his seven-year-old son out of school. — Jeff Ihaza, Rolling Stone, 14 Sep. 2026

Just months after their 21‑year‑old son died in a road crash in October, Rapti‑Tzelepi, now 54, and her husband made the decision to pursue another attempt using an embryo frozen for 22 years. — CNN Money, 14 Sep. 2026

Their son, who struggled with drug addiction and severe mental health issues, has pled not guilty. — Gary Baum, HollywoodReporter, 14 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English sone, from Old English sunu; akin to Old High German sun son, Greek hyios

Combining form

Latin sonus sound

Noun (2)

International Scientific Vocabulary, from Latin sonus sound — more at sound entry 1

First Known Use

Noun (1)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun (2)

1936, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing son

• favorite son
• prodigal son/daughter
• son et lumière
• son-in-law
• son of a gun
• son of God
• son of man

Rhymes for son

• bun
• done
• dun
• fun
• gun
• hun
• jun
• none
• nun
• one
• pun
• run

Kids Definition

son

noun

ˈsən 

1

a

: a male offspring especially of human parents

b

: a human male descendant

2

capitalized : the second person of the Trinity

3

: a man or boy closely associated with or thought of as a child of something (as a country, race, or religion)