uncle
Americannoun
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a brother of one's father or mother.
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an aunt's husband.
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a familiar title or term of address for any elderly man.
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Slang. a pawnbroker.
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(initial capital letter) Uncle Sam.
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a word formerly used in communications to represent the letter U.
idioms
noun
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a brother of one's father or mother
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the husband of one's aunt
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a term of address sometimes used by children for a male friend of their parents
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slang a pawnbroker
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of uncle
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English, from Anglo-French uncle, Old French oncle, from Latin avunculus “mother's brother,” equivalent to av(us) “mother's father” + -unculus suffix extracted from diminutives of n-stems ( see homunculus)
Explanation
Your uncle is your parent's brother, or the man who marries one of your parent's siblings. Your favorite uncle might teach you to play chess or take you to amusement parks. Usually, an uncle is a relative — the brother of your mother, for example, or your dad's step-brother. It's also common in many cultures to have honorary uncles who are close family friends. From your uncle's perspective, you are either his niece or nephew. Colloquially, when you say or cry uncle, you're admitting defeat: "I'll let go of your arm when you say uncle!"
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"Our dear Uncle Tom, we loved him so much. He is my main memory of the war, and his photo is still by my bedside," said Dulcie, who turns 90 in June.
From BBC • May 5, 2026
Uncle Sam doesn’t care if you just bought the mutual fund either.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 5, 2026
In Lancaster County, there’s a lot of pride tied to fresh pretzels, says Misty Skolnick, co-owner of Uncle Jerry’s Pretzels, a family-owned business best known for their handmade pretzels.
From Salon • Apr. 28, 2026
With the three-month T-bill yield at 3.68%, that represents real savings to Uncle Sam.
From Barron's • Apr. 10, 2026
It’s after Gran and Uncle John leave that I have a stroke of brilliance.
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
