Mother
A Mother is a female parent of a child.
- Context:
- ...
- Example(s):
- a Human Mother.
- a Chimpanzee Mother.
- a Bear Mother.
- ...
- Counter-Example(s):
- See: Term of Endearment, Woman, Childbirth, Offspring, Fertilisation, Gestational Surrogacy, Sexual Intercourse, Egg Donation, Adoption.
References
2024
- (Wikipedia, 2024) ⇒ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/mother Retrieved:2024-9-16.
- A mother is the female parent of a child. A woman may be considered a mother by virtue of having given birth, by raising a child who may or may not be her biological offspring, or by supplying her ovum for fertilisation in the case of gestational surrogacy.
A biological mother is the female genetic contributor to the creation of the infant, through sexual intercourse or egg donation. A biological mother may have legal obligations to a child not raised by her, such as an obligation of monetary support. An adoptive mother is a female who has become the child's parent through the legal process of adoption. A putative mother is a female whose biological relationship to a child is alleged but has not been established. A stepmother is a non-biological female parent married to a child's preexisting parent, and may form a family unit but generally does not have the legal rights and responsibilities of a parent in relation to the child.
A father is the male counterpart of a mother. Women who are pregnant may be referred to as expectant mothers or mothers-to-be. The process of becoming a mother has been referred to as "matrescence". The adjective "maternal" refers to a mother and comparatively to "paternal" for a father. The verb "to mother" means to procreate or to sire a child, or to provide care for a child, from which also derives the noun "mothering". Related terms of endearment are mom (mama, mommy), mum (mummy), mumsy, mamacita (ma, mam) and mammy. A female role model that children can look up to is sometimes referred to as a mother-figure.
- A mother is the female parent of a child. A woman may be considered a mother by virtue of having given birth, by raising a child who may or may not be her biological offspring, or by supplying her ovum for fertilisation in the case of gestational surrogacy.