Synonyms for maternal

7 synonyms
4 antonyms
2 meanings

adjective

Most common

enate enatic motherly parental

Synonyms by meaning

Adjective

1. Enate

enate, enatic

2. Motherly

motherly, parental, motherlike, motherish

Other

maternalistic

Antonyms

fatherly, fetal, foetal

All antonyms of maternal →

Definitions

adj. 1
Of or pertaining to a mother; having the characteristics of a mother; motherly.
His weakness seemed to bring out her maternal instincts.
adj. 2
Related through the mother, or her side of the family.
Toby is my maternal uncle.

Related words

Word family: maternalism maternalistic maternally maternity

Choose the right word

or Maternal?

Besides this, maternal is confined to the feelings of a mother toward her own children, whereas motherly has a secondary sense, denoting a care like that of a mother for her offspring.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Example sentences

parental Since last year I am a member of parental community.
motherly His helplessness appeals to her motherly sympathy.

Popularity over time

Word	1850 → 2019	Trend
maternal		rising
enate		falling
parental		rising
motherly		rising
maternalistic		rising

Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.

By length

5 letters: enate
6 letters: enatic
8 letters: parental³, motherly³
9 letters: motherish
10 letters: motherlike
13 letters: maternalistic

The small number after each word is its number of syllables (parental³ = 3 syllables).