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Definition of "motherly" []

  • Of, like, or appropriate to a mother: motherly love. (adjective)
  • Showing the affection of a mother. (adjective)
  • In a manner befitting a mother. (adverb)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "motherly" in a sentence
  • "Is she "lacking in motherly inhibitions and propriety and self-control" [p. 156]?"
  • "She was quiet, simple; in short, motherly, when seen by Cooper the winter of 1828-29."
  • "She was quiet, simple; in short, motherly, when seen by Cooper the winter of"