aunt

American  

[ant, ahnt] / ænt, ɑnt /

noun

1. the sister of one's father or mother.

2. the wife of one's uncle.

3. Chiefly New England and South Midland U.S. (used as a term of respectful address to an older woman who is not related to the speaker.)

4. Slang. an aging gay man.

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aunt British  

/ ɑːnt /

noun

1. a sister of one's father or mother

2. the wife of one's uncle

3. a term of address used by children for any woman, esp for a friend of the parents

4. an exclamation of surprise or amazement

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Pronunciation

The usual vowel of aunt in the United States is the of rant except in New England and eastern Virginia, where it is commonly the “New England broad a, ” a vowel similar to French and having a quality between the of hat and the of car. The vowel itself is also used. In New England and eastern Virginia or the -like sound occur in aunt in the speech of all social groups, even where a “broad a ” is not used in words like dance and laugh. Elsewhere, the “broader” a is chiefly an educated pronunciation, fostered by the schools with only partial success (“Your relative isn't an insect, is she?”), and is sometimes regarded as an affectation. Aunt with the vowel of paint is chiefly South Midland United States and is limited to folk speech. The pronunciation of aunt was brought to America before British English developed the in such words as aunt, dance, and laugh. In American English, is most common in the areas that maintained the closest cultural ties with England after the pronunciation developed there in these words.

Other Word Forms

• auntlike adjective

Etymology

Origin of aunt

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English aunte, from Anglo-French, equivalent to Old French ante, from Latin amita “father's sister,” old feminine past participle of amāre “to love,” i.e., “beloved”

Example Sentences

Chopra’s parents, aunts and uncles all live in the A-19 Modern Colony apartment complex, weighed down by the grandiose legacy of their late family elder.

From Los Angeles Times

The poem, first published in 1945, explores the passage of time and is based on Thomas's childhood memories on his aunt's farm.

From BBC

Related: ‘Six figures are missing’: My aunt’s attorney took over her bank account.

From MarketWatch

Huerta has cycled through the stages of life in the public eye in a way that has seen Latinos relate to her over the decades as our daughter, our sister, our aunt.

From Los Angeles Times

He mentioned his worries that he might eventually spend years sorting through the possessions of his father and one of his aunts.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• cousin
• father
• folk
• mother
• niece
• sibling
• uncle