How to Use fatherly in a Sentence

fatherly

adjective
  • He took a fatherly interest in the careers of younger writers.
  • Baron was gentle, fatherly, and prim.
    — Zach Helfand, New Yorker, 25 Aug. 2025
  • When Glanville pulls him into a fatherly side hug, Friede seems to swell.
    — Kyle Dickman, Outside Online, 16 May 2019
  • The retiree doesn’t have children and has enjoyed this new fatherly role.
    — Sarah Matusek, The Christian Science Monitor, 24 Sep. 2024
  • Fears does an excellent job of giving tough coaching but with a fatherly touch.
    — BostonGlobe.com, 15 June 2021
  • The realization that life is cyclical is a long view, a fatherly view.
    — Jon Pareles, New York Times, 6 June 2018
  • Think of it as your way of returning the favor for all the fatherly advice he's given over the years.
    — Shannon Carlin, refinery29.com, 20 June 2020
  • Stephen Jones said his fatherly advice would have been different.
    — Jori Epstein, USA TODAY, 11 Sep. 2020
  • Elway is among many former Broncos who view Bowlen in a fatherly light.
    — Kyle Fredrickson, The Denver Post, 17 June 2019
  • In the process, Kevin crashes a dirt bike and frets about all his motherly/fatherly duties.
    — Matt Miller, Esquire, 3 Oct. 2017
  • Bono chalked up the fatherly emotional neglect to being an Irish thing.
    — Mike Fleming Jr, Deadline, 30 Aug. 2025
  • There is camaraderie at the Paris film agency at the center of the show until the death of its fatherly head.
    — Chandra Steele, PCMAG, 30 Aug. 2023
  • There’s non-stop action, though not for faint hearts, and never an unassuming hobbit or fatherly ent by way of relief.
    — Tom Shippey, WSJ, 28 June 2018
  • Don’t let elderly men with an eye to a flirtation pat you on the shoulder and take a fatherly interest in you.
    — Washington Post, 19 Apr. 2021
  • Hans’ dad passed away when Hans was young, and Chainski and Mullins each took on a fatherly role for him.
    — Heidi Stevens, chicagotribune.com, 6 June 2019
  • And Ivory, ever the fatherly figure, kept checking on his players.
    — Sam Blum, The Athletic, 6 Jan. 2025
  • Childhood was a blast, especially the first decade, but fatherly scrutiny picked up around fourth grade.
    — Mike Kerrigan, WSJ, 14 June 2019
  • Some paternal lessons have stuck with Don, who tries still to parse the old fatherly instruction for the faintest wisdom.
    — Julia Ioffe, GQ, 21 June 2018
  • Din eventually adopts a fatherly relationship with his young ward and tries to protect him from all threats.
    — Chris Snellgrove, Entertainment Weekly, 21 May 2026
  • If Wray ignores those fatherly pleas for leniency, Biden should abruptly fire him.
    — Matt Ford, The New Republic, 17 Dec. 2020
  • LeBron and many others have been raised with little fatherly guidance and a strong female presence in their lives.
    — Mike Bianchi, OrlandoSentinel.com, 20 Apr. 2018
  • Delroy Lindo then enveloped him in a fatherly embrace.
    — Baz Bamigboye, Deadline, 16 Mar. 2026
  • His father grieved by never mentioning her name again in the house, and the fatherly approval Bono craved was in short supply.
    — Mike Fleming Jr, Deadline, 30 Aug. 2025
  • But the memory of Parker and his fatherly love went beyond his family.
    — Ravien Iris Burns | Jrnola, NOLA.com, 21 Dec. 2020
  • Drake is showing his 5-year-old son Adonis Graham some fatherly love courtside.
    — Alexis Jones, Peoplemag, 28 Dec. 2022
  • But while some might point to Khaled's exultations as a case of fatherly love (and a healthy dose of bias), there's a lot of truth to the hype around Asahd.
    — Cady Lang, Time, 22 June 2017
  • Paltrow said her father Bruce had a great affection for Pitt, who saw Bruce as a fatherly mentor.
    — Edward Segarra, USA TODAY, 14 June 2022
  • The palace shared this sweet image of then-Prince Felipe getting some fatherly affection from his daughters.
    — Lauren Hubbard, Town & Country, 6 Aug. 2022
  • Bob’s small acts of fatherly kindness fill a familial void in Lily’s life and hold the power to change her direction forever.
    — Samantha Bergeson, IndieWire, 12 Feb. 2025
  • The contest is open to a father, a coach, a teacher, a mentor or anyone who has made a fatherly impact (male or female) on the applicant’s life.
    — Leada Gore | [email protected], al, 4 June 2021

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'fatherly.' 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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