uncle

American  

[uhng-kuhl] / ˈʌŋ kəl /

noun

1. a brother of one's father or mother.

2. an aunt's husband.

3. a familiar title or term of address for any elderly man.

4. Slang.  a pawnbroker.

5. (initial capital letter)  Uncle Sam.

6. a word formerly used in communications to represent the letter U.

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idioms

1. say / cry uncle,  to concede defeat.

   They ganged up on him in the schoolyard and made him say uncle.

uncle British  

/ ˈʌŋkəl /

noun

1. a brother of one's father or mother

2. the husband of one's aunt

3. a term of address sometimes used by children for a male friend of their parents

4. slang  a pawnbroker

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uncle More Idioms  

1. see cry uncle; Dutch uncle.

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Other Word Forms

• uncleless adjective
• uncleship noun

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 ( homunculus )

Example Sentences

Nick Owen, the grandson of Sir Alfred, is the custodian of the BRM name today, along with brother Paul, cousin Simon and uncle John.

From BBC

He came from a sporting family - his father played hockey for Pakistan and his great uncles played for Stoke City and Port Vale.

From BBC

In a statement, Mohammed's uncle spoke of the family's "immense relief".

From BBC

Her uncle, John F. Kennedy Jr., died in 1999 when his small plane crashed.

From Los Angeles Times

Her uncle told local media the family had no involvement in her death.

From BBC

Related Words

• aunt
• cousin
• father
• folk
• mother
• niece
• sibling