co-father

noun

"co-father" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“co-father” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
9
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A person in the relationship of a godfather to the other god-parents, and the legal parents, of a child.

Corpus desk

Index EN-co-father · co-father · English

co-father · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "C" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Key facts for co-father
PropertyValue
Headwordco-father
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters9
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “co-father” in English

co-fatherfalls outside the top-100,000 ranked English words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

co-father is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for co-father, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

Etymologically, the entry records: From co- + father, in sense 1 as a calque of Latin compater, French compère. The correct English form is co-father, spelled C-O---F-A-T-H-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    A person in the relationship of a godfather to the other god-parents, and the legal parents, of a child.
  2. 2
    In a male homosexual couple, the nonbiological father (partner of the biological father) of a child.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how co-father appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. A man invites a good friend, or an important man who might help him, to become his co-father.
  2. gay co-fathers and their children are never sure of finding acceptance in straight communities.

Etymology

From co- + father, in sense 1 as a calque of Latin compater, French compère.

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "co-father"?
"co-father" is spelled C-O---F-A-T-H-E-R.
What does "co-father" mean?
As a noun, "co-father" means: A person in the relationship of a godfather to the other god-parents, and the legal parents, of a child.
What is the origin of the word "co-father"?
From co- + father, in sense 1 as a calque of Latin compater, French compère. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list