the father and mother of something Definition

father
noun

1. A male parent.

Thesaurus: sire, forefather, procreator, progenitor, parent, forebear, ancestor, paterfamilias, dad, daddy, papa, pa, pop (US).
2. One's ancestors.

Form: fathers
3. A founder, inventor, originator, pioneer or early leader.

Thesaurus: originator, creator, architect, founder, inventor, sponsor, patron, promoter, supporter, author, promulgator.
4. A title or form of address for a priest.

Form: Father
5a. Christianity.
God;
Form: Father
5b. Christianity.
The first person of the Trinity (see trinity); God.
Form: Father
6. The leading or senior men of a city, etc.

Form: fathers
7. The oldest member or member of longest standing of a profession or body.
8. Used as a title in personifying something ancient or venerable.

Example: Father Time
Form: Father
9. One of a group of ecclesiastical writers of the early centuries, usually ending with Ambrose, Jerome and Augustine.

verb fathered, fathering

1. To be the father of (a child); to beget (offspring); to procreate.
2. To invent or originate (an idea).

Derivative: fatherhood
noun

Derivative: fatherless
adj

Not having a living father.

Derivative: fatherlike
adj

Idiom: how's your father

See under how.

Idiom: like father like son

Said on remarking that someone is like his father in some way.

Idiom: the father and mother of something

A very extreme (especially bad) example of something
Example: There'll be the father and mother of a row if the boss sees this!

Etymology: Anglo-Saxon fæder.

Phrasal Verb: father something on or upon someone

To claim that they are the father of something.To assign it as their responsibility.