filial

<font size="-1" face="arial, helvetica"> <p> <strong> <font color="#000066">Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for September 30, 2021 is:</font> </strong> </p> <p> <strong>filial</strong> &#149; \FIL-ee-ul\&nbsp; &#149; <em>adjective</em><br /> <p><em>Filial</em> means "of, relating to, or befitting a person's child."</p> <p>// Margaret's sense of <em>filial</em> responsibility is only part of her motivation for carrying on her parents' business; she also loves the work.</p> <p><a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/filial">See the entry ></a></p> </p> <p> <strong>Examples:</strong><br /> <p>"The text purports to be Geppetto's captivity journal…. He recounts the story of Pinocchio's creation and truancy; he records [that] he continues to make art, painting portraits of lost loves and fashioning <em>filial</em> <a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/surrogate">surrogates</a>—lifeless, alas—out of old hard tack and shards of crockery." — Bruce Handy, <em>The New York Times</em>, 14 Feb. 2021</p> </p> <p> <strong>Did you know?</strong><br /> <p><em>Filial</em> comes from Latin <em>filius</em>, meaning "son," and <em>filia</em>, "daughter"; in English, it applies to any gender. The word has long carried the dutiful sense "owed to a parent by a child," as found in such phrases as "filial respect" and "filial piety." These days it can also be used more generally for any emotion or behavior of a child to a parent.</p> <br /><br /> </p> </font>