stepparent

Meaning

1. 1nouncountable

   The person who is married to one of your parents but is not your own mother or father by birth.

   Grammar: Refers to either a stepmother or a stepfather: she lives with her stepparent.

   Patterns

   • a stepparent to someone
   • become someone's stepparent

   Her stepparent helped her with homework every evening.

   Becoming a stepparent requires patience and kindness.

   He gets along well with his stepparent and her family.

Word forms

Common combinations

become a stepparent

He became a stepparent when he married Anna.

new stepparent

The children were nervous about meeting their new stepparent.

stepparent adoption

Stepparent adoption can give the child legal ties to the new parent.

relationship with a stepparent

Her relationship with her stepparent improved over time.

loving stepparent

She was a loving stepparent who always attended school events.

Synonyms and how they differ

stepmother

Stepmother is specific to a woman, while stepparent covers either gender.

stepfather

Stepfather is specific to a man, while stepparent is gender neutral.

guardian

A guardian is legally responsible for a child and need not be married to a parent, so it is a different relationship.

Opposites

Word family

stepchild noun

the child of your husband or wife from an earlier relationship

stepmother noun

a woman married to your parent

stepfather noun

a man married to your parent

stepsibling noun

the child of your stepparent

parent noun

a mother or father

Commonly confused: stepparent or foster parent?

Practice

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