# paternalistic

> English word · Adjective · frequency rank #55,635

## Definitions
1. the quality of being paternal, i.e. like a father, e.g. characterized by behaving in a benevolent yet intrusive manner towards underlings
2. of, pertaining to, characteristic of or practicing paternalism

## Etymology
From paternal + -istic.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/paternalistic