par ‧ ent S1 W1 /ˈpeərənt $ ˈper-/ BrE AmE noun [countable]
[ Date: 1400-1500 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: Latin , present participle of parere 'to give birth to' ]
1 . the father or mother of a person or animal:
Children under 14 should be accompanied by a parent.
The eggs are guarded by both parents.
Melissa’s spending the weekend at her parents’ house.
⇨ ↑ birth parent , ⇨ foster parents at ↑ foster 2 (3), ⇨ lone parent at ↑ lone (2), ⇨ ↑ one-parent family , ↑ single parent
2 . something that produces other things of the same type:
New shoots appear near the parent plant.
3 . a company which owns a smaller company or organization:
Land Rover’s new parent
• • •
COLLOCATIONS
■ ADJECTIVES/NOUN + parent
▪ a single parent ( also a lone parent British English ) (=someone who has their children living with them, but no partner)
My mum is a single parent.
▪ somebody's biological/natural parents
Most children are reared by their natural parents.
▪ somebody's birth parents (=the ones who are biologically related to them)
Only half the children who are adopted wish to discover their birth parents.
▪ somebody's real parents (=their biological parents)
I was thrilled to have found my real parents.
▪ adoptive parents (=the people who take someone else's child into their home and legally become his or her parents)
Adoptive parents often have little practical preparation for parenthood.
▪ a foster parent (=someone who has other people's children living with them)
Teresa was removed from her mother's care and placed with foster parents.