filial

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filial

/ˈfɪl.i.əl/ US, UK
/ˈfɪl.jəl/ US, UK
/ˈfi.li.əl/ US, also

Rhymes with -ɪliəl, -ɪljəl, -iːliəl

Where it comes from

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

adjective more filial · most filial

not comparable Pertaining to or befitting a son or daughter. The filial duty Ellesmere had paid to a father, who had no other claim to it than that he was his father, was now consoling to him [D'Alonville]; […]
Opposite: unfilial
comparable Respectful of the duties and attitudes of sons or daughters toward their parents. If the admonition [to the parent] does not take effect, the son will be more reverential and more filial; […]
Of a generation or generations descending from a specific previous one. This, following Bateson, we may call the parental generation or P generation. Subsequent generations are called filial generations (abbreviated F) and their numerical order is indicated by a subscript, as first filial (F₁), second filial (F₂), etc.

Translations

Every language

adj pertaining to a son or daughter

Español	filial
中文	子女的 zǐnǚ de
Português	filial
Français	filial
Deutsch	söhnlich (sonly), töchterlich (daughterly), filial
Italiano	filiale
Ελληνικά	θυγατρικός thygatrikós
Русский	сыно́вий synóvij, сыно́вний synóvnij, доче́рний dočérnij, дочери́нский dočerínskij
العربية	اِبْنِيّ ibniyy

adj respectful of the duties and attitudes of a son or daughter toward their parents

한국어	효도하다 hyodohada, 효행하다 hyohaenghada
日本語	孝行する kōkō-suru
中文	孝順的 /孝顺的 xiàoshùn de

adj of descending generation or generations

中文	子代的

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Cite this

MLA

"filial." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/filial. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

filial. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/filial

Chicago

"filial." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/filial.

BibTeX

@misc{filial_2026,
  title = {filial},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/filial},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}