Definitions for orphanˈɔr fən

Random House Webster's College Dictionary

or•phanˈɔr fən(n.)

a child who has lost both parents or, less commonly, one parent through death.
a young animal that is without its mother.
a person or thing that is without protective affiliation, sponsorship, etc.
(esp. in word processing) the first line of a paragraph when it appears alone at the bottom of a printed page.
Category: Printing
Ref: Compare widow (def. 3b). 3 2
(adj.)bereft of parents.
of or for orphans.
(v.t.)to cause to become an orphan.

Origin of orphan:

1425–75; late ME < LL orphanus destitute, without parents < Gk orphanós bereaved; akin to L orbus bereaved

or′phan•hood`(n.)

Princeton's WordNet

orphan(noun)
a child who has lost both parents
orphan(noun)
someone or something who lacks support or care or supervision
orphan(noun)
the first line of a paragraph that is set as the last line of a page or column
orphan(verb)
a young animal without a mother
orphan(verb)
deprive of parents

Kernerman English Learner's Dictionary

orphan(noun)ˈɔrfən
a child whose parents have died
orphans from the war
orphan(verb)ˈɔrfən
to become an orphan
a girl who was orphaned at the age of nine

Wiktionary

orphan(Noun)
A person, especially a minor, both or (rarely) one of whose parents have died.
orphan(Noun)
A young animal with no mother.
orphan(Noun)
Anything that is unsupported, as by its source, provider or caretaker, by reason of the supporter's demise or decision to abandon.
orphan(Noun)
A single line of type, beginning a paragraph, at the bottom of a column or page.
orphan(Noun)
Any unreferenced abstract object.
orphan(Verb)
To deprive of parents (used almost exclusively in the passive)
What do you do when you come across two orphaned polar bear cubs?
orphan(Verb)
To make unavailable, as by unlinking the last remaining pointer to.
orphan(Adjective)
Deprived of parents (also orphaned).
She is an orphan child.
orphan(Adjective)
Remaining after the removal of some form of support.
With its government funding curtailed, the gun registry became an orphan program.

Origin: From orphanus, from ὀρφανός, from Hórbʰo-. Cognate with Sanskrit अर्भ, Latin orbus, Old High German erbi, arbi (German Erbe), ierfa. More at erf.