pa·pa (pä?p?, p?-pä?) also pop·pa (pä?p?)n. Informal Father.[French; see papa in Indo-European roots.]American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.papa (p??p??) nold-fashioned an informal word for father1[C17: from French, a children’s word for father; compare Late Latin p?pa, Greek pappa]papa (?p??p??) n (Roman Catholic Church) RC Church another name for the pope11[C16: from Italian]papa (?p??pa) n (Minerals) rare NZ a soft blue-grey clay of marine siltstone or sandstone[M?ori]Papa (?p??p??) n (Telecommunications) communications a code word for the letter pCollins English Dictionary ? Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014fa?ther (?f? ð?r) n. 1. the begetter of offspring; male parent. 2. (often cap.) one’s own father. 3. a father-in-law, stepfather, adoptive father, or foster father. 4. any male ancestor; forefather; progenitor. 5. a man who gives paternal care to others; protector or provider. 6. a person who has originated or established something. 7. a precursor, prototype, or early form. 8. one of the leading men in a city, town, etc. 9. a priest or a title for a priest. 10. (cap.) God, esp. the first person of the Trinity. 11. a title of respect for an elderly man. 12. any of the chief early Christian writers. v.t. 13. to beget. 14. to be the creator, founder, or author of; originate. 15. to act as a father toward. 16. to take the responsibility for. 17. to establish the paternity or source of. v.i. 18. to perform the tasks or duties of a male parent; act paternally. [before 900; Middle English fader, Old English fæder; c. Old Saxon fadar, Old High German fater, Old Norse fathir, Latin pater, GK pat?r, Skt pitar] fa?ther?less, adj. fa?ther?like`, adj. Random House Kernerman Webster’s College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.papaAlso known as a voodoo priest, ?houngan? or papa-loa, in the vodoun religion this is a man who summons vodoun gods in order to divine the future or heal.Dictionary of Unfamiliar Words by Diagram Group Copyright © 2008 by Diagram Visual Information Limited