British mainly facetious a public school slang word for father
Word origin
from Latin
Pater in British English
(ˈpeɪtə)
noun
Walter (Horatio). 1839–94, English essayist and critic, noted for his prose style and his advocation of the "love of art for its own sake". His works include the philosophical romance Marius the Epicurean (1885), Studies in the History of the Renaissance (1873), and Imaginary Portraits (1887)
Pater in American English
(ˈpeɪtər)
Walter (Horatio)1839-94; Eng. essayist & critic
pater in American English
(ˈpeɪtər; for 2 ˈpɑtər; ˈpɑtɛr)
noun
1. Chiefly British, Informal
father
now only a humorous usage
2. [P-]
paternoster
Word origin
L, father
Examples of 'pater' in a sentence
pater
Your pater was always well-heeled, not to mention being a bit of a crook, eh?
Aldiss, Brian SOMEWHERE EAST OF LIFE
So after the pater 's death, I told myself that Castlemere was no longer my home.
Melville, Anne THE HARDIE INHERITANCE
Causing quite a rumpus, the shows in London, according to the pater.