How to Use paternal in a Sentence

paternal

adjective
  • He did not neglect his paternal responsibilities after the divorce.
  • On the paternal side, though, there was no such pattern.
    — Ari Daniel, NPR, 16 Aug. 2025
  • But two of his second cousins, one on his paternal side and one on his maternal side, had.
    — Heather Murphy, New York Times, 1 July 2019
  • Guerrero got to hold his hand for a while, and his paternal grandmother got to hold him as well.
    — Fox News, 8 Mar. 2018
  • 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
  • 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
  • There was a first-cousin match on the paternal line, and a first cousin once removed on the maternal line.
    — Sarah Weinman, Rolling Stone, 1 Dec. 2024
  • His paternal grandma prints the flyers and helps get the word out, while his mom’s mom makes the costumes.
    — Laura Kiniry, Popular Science, 22 Oct. 2025
  • The boy is now 5 and under the care of his paternal grandmother.
    — Grace Toohey, Los Angeles Times, 2 July 2025
  • The recessive chin and jawline must have been paternal traits.
    — Gary Baum, HollywoodReporter, 16 June 2025
  • Jesse Marsch’s paternal instincts kicked in.
    — Joshua Kloke, New York Times, 10 Oct. 2025
  • Chaos is created, and then the paternal detective finds the truth and solves it all.
    — David Sims, The Atlantic, 26 Dec. 2022
  • Russell talks of getting ice cream with his father, but the film paints a paternal longing.
    — Michael Cavna, Washington Post, 6 Mar. 2020
  • The law was the first major challenge to the paternal presumption.
    — Patricia Fersch, Forbes, 4 May 2021
  • 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
  • Meanwhile, her reunion with the paternal side of the family is rife with culture shock.
    — Odie Henderson, BostonGlobe.com, 2 Mar. 2023
  • The siblings — one of whom is a two-year-old who now lives with a paternal father —were all mostly asymptomatic.
    — Stefan Sykes, NBC News, 30 Oct. 2020
  • 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
  • My paternal grandfather was a big deal in the Knights of Columbus.
    — Charles P. Pierce, Esquire, 25 Feb. 2016
  • These mutations can be spontaneous, but the paternal age of a sperm donor can also be a factor.
    — Chelsea Bailey, CNN Money, 25 Oct. 2025
  • 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
  • The stop-motion short tells the simplistic tale of a bear who comes under the care of a maternal (paternal?
    — Joe Reid, Vulture, 10 Mar. 2026
  • 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
  • Gilberg spent a lot of time with his paternal grandparents, who lived nearby with their adult daughter, Belle.
    — Los Angeles Times, 13 Jan. 2026
  • The younger De Benedettis were taken aback by the paternal foray.
    — The Economist, 14 Nov. 2019
  • Momma left me and my brother Adam with our paternal grandmother.
    — Bea L. Hines, Miami Herald, 30 Jan. 2026
  • Her daughter is being raised by her paternal grandparents.
    — Meghan O'Brien, NBC news, 28 Mar. 2026
  • There was that paternal quality that Brenner had.
    — Nick Romano, Entertainment Weekly, 30 Oct. 2025
  • Things don’t go too well at first, as Shrek tests out his paternal skills on Arthur while trying to convince him to take over as king.
    — Skyler Trepel September 1, EW.com, 1 Sep. 2025
  • Rocky's middle name, Harold, comes from his paternal grandfather.
    — Zoey Lyttle, PEOPLE, 22 Apr. 2026

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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