From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishpaternalpa‧ter‧nal /pəˈtɜːnl $ -ɜːr-/ adjective 1 FATHERpaternal feelings or behaviour are like those of a kind father towards his children Dan took a paternal interest in my work.2 → paternal grandmother/uncle etc —paternally adverb → maternal
Examples from the Corpus
paternal• Professor Johnson was always there for paternal advice.• We grew up locked in permanent contention with one another over a meager and fickle supply of paternal affection.• It is completely different from the combination of maternal and paternal chromosomes in natural mating mechanisms.• C.'s paternal grandmother applied for residence and contact.• The infant girl was immediately named Margarett Williams Sargent for her paternal grandmother, who was eighty-three and ailing.• Although he had no children of his own, he took a kind of paternal interest in Katie's progress at school.• Innocent asserted his paternal protection of Frederick and the position of Sicily as a fief of the papacy.Origin paternal (1400-1500) Latin paternus “of a father”, from pater “father” 