godfather
godfather Lexical Profile
godfather Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A man who presents a child at baptism and promises to take responsibility for their religious education and moral upbringing.
"My uncle agreed to serve as the baby's godfather at the christening ceremony."
A male leader, pioneer, or influential founder of a movement, field, or artistic genre.
"James Brown is widely celebrated as the godfather of soul music."
The supreme male leader of an organized crime syndicate, especially within the Mafia.
"The novel chronicles the rise of a powerful Mafia godfather in postwar New York."
• verb
To act as a godfather, sponsor, or guiding mentor to a person, project, or movement.
"The veteran producer godfathered the young director's independent film from script to screen."
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
From Old English godfæder, formed from god ('God') and fæder ('father'), patterned after Late Latin pater in Deo ('father in God') to denote a spiritual sponsor at baptism.