filial

B2 Topic:Describing Qualities

US /ˈfi.li.əl/ UK /ˈfɪl.i.əl/ See IPA manual

Freq #27572

Meanings

1

adj
Relating to or suitable for a son or daughter, especially in their duty toward parents.

In many cultures, filial respect for one's parents is deeply valued.
2

adj
Describing a generation that descends from a particular earlier one, as in genetics.

The first filial generation showed the dominant trait clearly.

Thesaurus

Word family

Derived forms filiallyfilialnessfiliopietisticgrandfilialnonfilial

Related forms filiation

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

filial piety
respect, care, and a sense of duty toward parents and ancestors, especially in Confucian traditions

Adjective + noun

Simplified etymology

Filial, recorded from Late Middle English, ultimately derives from Latin filius, “son.” Its history is shared with affiliate, whose earliest English sense was “adopt as a son.”

Etymology

From Middle English filial, from Latin fīliālis, from filius (“son”) / filia (“daughter”) + -al.

*dʰeh₁(y)- Proto-Indo-European filial Middle English fīliālis Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Describing Qualities

External links

# filial

**Type:** Word
**Level:** B2
**Part of speech:** adj
**IPA (US):** /ˈfi.li.əl/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈfɪl.i.əl/
**Frequency rank:** 27572

## Meanings
1. Relating to or suitable for a son or daughter, especially in their duty toward parents.
2. Describing a generation that descends from a particular earlier one, as in genetics.

## Examples
- In many cultures, filial respect for one's parents is deeply valued.
- The first filial generation showed the dominant trait clearly.

## Derived Forms
- filially
- filialness
- filiopietistic
- grandfilial
- nonfilial

## Related Forms
- filiation

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: *dʰeh₁(y)-
- Root: filial
- Root: fīliālis

## Etymology
From Middle English filial, from Latin fīliālis, from filius (“son”) / filia (“daughter”) + -al.

## AI Etymology
Filial comes from Middle English filial, from Latin fīliālis, from filius (“son”) / filia (“daughter”) + -al. In current use, the main senses are “Relating to or suitable for a son or daughter, especially in their duty toward parents” and “Describing a generation that descends from a particular earlier one, as in genetics”.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities

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