paternity

== English == === Etymology === From Middle French paternité, from Old French, from Latin paternitās (“paternity”), from paternus (“of or pertaining to a father, paternal”) + -itās, from pater (“father”). === Pronunciation === (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /pəˈtɜːnɪti/ (General American) IPA(key): /pəˈtɜɹnəti/, [-ɾi] Rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ)nɪti Hyphenation: pa‧tern‧i‧ty === Noun === paternity (countable and uncountable, plural paternities) Fatherhood, the state or quality of being a father. Parental descent from a father. (law) Legal acknowledgement of a man's fatherhood of a child. (figuratively) Authorship. ==== Derived terms ==== ==== Translations ==== ==== See also ==== affiliation maternity