Question

patronymic Reading Tolstoy's vast novel, it can be helpful to know that Helene Vasilievna's second name is a patronymic, and thus that her father is named Vasili. ˌpætrəˈnɪmɪk

Accepted Answer

Part of a personal name based on the name of one's father or one of his ancestors. A patronymic, or patronym (see also PATER/PATR), is generally formed by adding a prefix or suffix to a name. Thus, a few centuries ago, the male patronymic of Patrick was Fitzpatrick (“Patrick's son”), that of Peter was Peterson or Petersen, that of Donald was MacDonald or McDonald, and that of Hernando was Hernández. Today, of course, each of these is an ordinary family name, or surname. In Russia, both a patronymic and a surname are still used; in the name Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky, for example, Ilyich is a patronymic meaning “son of Ilya.

word	patronymic
definition	Part of a personal name based on the name of one's father or one of his ancestors.
eg_sentence	Reading Tolstoy's vast novel, it can be helpful to know that Helene Vasilievna's second name is a patronymic, and thus that her father is named Vasili.
explanation	A patronymic, or patronym (see also PATER/PATR), is generally formed by adding a prefix or suffix to a name. Thus, a few centuries ago, the male patronymic of Patrick was Fitzpatrick (“Patrick's son”), that of Peter was Peterson or Petersen, that of Donald was MacDonald or McDonald, and that of Hernando was Hernández. Today, of course, each of these is an ordinary family name, or surname. In Russia, both a patronymic and a surname are still used; in the name Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky, for example, Ilyich is a patronymic meaning “son of Ilya.
IPA	ˌpætrəˈnɪmɪk

Patronymic Father Peter Ilyich Part Personal Based One's