cousin

noun

cous·​in ˈkə-zən How to pronounce cousin (audio)
1
a
: a child of one's uncle or aunt
b
: a relative descended from one's grandparent or more remote ancestor by two or more steps and in a different line
c
: kinsman, relative
a distant cousin
2
: one associated with or related to another : counterpart
Rural children deserve as good an education as their city cousins get.Benjamin Fine
3
used as a title by a sovereign in addressing a nobleman
4
: a member of a group regarded as ethnically or culturally related
our English cousins
cousinhood noun
cousinly adjective
cousinship noun

Examples of cousin in a Sentence

Everyone came to the wedding, including a distant cousin no one had heard from in years. The cricket is a cousin of the grasshopper. hurricanes and their cousins, typhoons
Recent Examples on the Web However, Claudia managed to come up with a Plan B and the cousin saved the day. Jeanne Phillips, The Mercury News, 8 Mar. 2024 Pilatus The utilitarian turboprop has long been in the shadow of smaller business jets, seen largely as a poor cousin to the faster, glitzier jets. Daniel Cote, Robb Report, 7 Mar. 2024 For a director who usually conducts workshops with future documentary subjects or natural actors, the prospect of filming his family—his cousin, brother, and mother—seemed uncomplicated. Savina Petkova, Variety, 7 Mar. 2024 Rory Alexander will play a younger version of Duncan LaCroix's Murtagh Fitzgibbons Fraser, Jamie's beloved cousin, while Sam Retford will portray headstrong future war chieftain Dougal MacKenzie (a role originated by Graham McTavish, who now appears on Men In Kilts with star Sam Heughan). Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 7 Mar. 2024 Among the attendees were (per my probably incomplete tally) his parents, his brother, his sister-in-law, one of his four nephews, a cousin, a godson, and a small, smiling crowd of friends, colleagues, surprise guests and well-wishers. Michael Andor Brodeur, Washington Post, 6 Mar. 2024 Siblings Marissa Quinones and Makiya Anthony from Dunkirk, New York, gave birth to their babies on Feb. 29 in one of the rarest conceivable odds, making the newborn cousins Leap Day birthday twins. Escher Walcott, Peoplemag, 5 Mar. 2024 Alan Andersen, Lyle and Erik's cousin, was one of those witnesses. Alicia Tejada, CBS News, 2 Mar. 2024 In 2001, Cantu was convicted for the murders of his 27-year-old cousin, James Mosqueda, and Mosqueda's girlfriend, Amy Kitchen, 22. Andrea Vacchiano, Fox News, 29 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'cousin.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English cosin, from Anglo-French cusin, cosin, from Latin consobrinus, from com- + sobrinus second cousin, from soror sister — more at sister

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of cousin was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near cousin

Cite this Entry

“Cousin.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cousin. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

cousin

noun
cous·​in ˈkəz-ᵊn How to pronounce cousin (audio)
1
a
: a child of one's uncle or aunt
b
: a relative descended from a common ancestor
2
: a person of a race or people ethnically or culturally related
our English cousins

Biographical Definition

Cousin

biographical name

Cou·​sin kü-ˈzaⁿ How to pronounce Cousin (audio)
Victor 1792–1867 French philosopher

More from Merriam-Webster on cousin

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