daughter
Americannoun
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a female child or person in relation to her parents.
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any female descendant.
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a person related as if by the ties binding daughter to parent.
daughter of the church.
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anything personified as female and considered with respect to its origin.
The United States is the daughter of the 13 colonies.
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Chemistry, Physics. an isotope formed by radioactive decay of another isotope.
adjective
noun
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a female offspring; a girl or woman in relation to her parents
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a female descendant
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a female from a certain country, etc, or one closely connected with a certain environment, etc
a daughter of the church
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archaic (often capital) a form of address for a girl or woman
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biology denoting a cell or unicellular organism produced by the division of one of its own kind
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physics (of a nuclide) formed from another nuclide by radioactive decay
Other Word Forms
- daughter-like adjective
- daughterhood noun
- daughterless adjective
- daughterlike adjective
- daughterliness noun
- daughterly adjective
Etymology
Origin of daughter
before 950; Middle English doughter, Old English dohtor; cognate with German Tochter, Greek thygátēr, Sanskrit duhitā
Explanation
A daughter is a female offspring, and while it is usually referring to the female child's relationship to her parents, it might be used to suggest any similar relationship, such as the organization “Daughters of the American Revolution.” The English word daughter appeared before the Tenth Century as the Old English dohtor and later the Middle English doughter. Any connected group of women might be referred to as "daughters," For example, the "daughters of Zion" of the Bible and the "Daughters of Elysium" in Beethoven’s "Ode to Joy" closing to his Ninth Symphony. If people say you are your mother's daughter, aside from pointing out the obvious they are saying the two of you have a lot in common.
Vocabulary lists containing daughter
List 6
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Spelling Practice, Unit 7
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Spelling Practice 2, Unit 5
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
In 2020, he was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease and his daughter Natalie announced that he had died on Wednesday.
From BBC • Apr. 23, 2026
Katy said her "dream" was for her daughter to have free access to it as currently she would need to "win the lottery" to pay for it privately.
From BBC • Apr. 23, 2026
Ella Hakkinen - daughter of double F1 world champion Mika - was previously the youngest driver currently on the McLaren driver development programme, having joined last year aged 14.
From BBC • Apr. 23, 2026
Marisol Marquez, a secretary who works for the state, sends her daughter to TK at 1st Street Elementary in Los Angeles.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 22, 2026
He sat and stared at his daughter, and Alex knew there was nothing she could say that was half as nasty as what he was saying to himself.
From "Nim’s Island" by Wendy Orr
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
