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Synonyms

kin

1 American  
[kin] / kɪn /

noun

(used with a plural verb)

  1. a person's relatives collectively; kinfolk.

  2. family relationship or kinship.

  3. a group of persons descended from a common ancestor or constituting a people, clan, tribe, or family.

  4. a relative or kinsman.

  5. someone or something of the same or similar kind.

    philosophy and its kin, theology.

adjective

  1. of the same family; related; akin.

  2. of the same kind or nature; having affinity.

idioms

  1. of kin, of the same family; related; akin.

    Although their surnames are identical they are not of kin.
-kin 2 American  

  1. a diminutive suffix of nouns.

    lambkin.
kin 1 British  
/ kɪn /

noun

  1. a person's relatives collectively; kindred

  2. a class or group with similar characteristics

  3. See next of kin

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

adjective

  1. (postpositive) related by blood

  2. a less common word for akin

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
-kin 2 British  

suffix

  1. small

    lambkin
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
kin More Idioms  

  1. see kith and kin.

Usage

What does -kin mean? The suffix -kin is used as a diminutive. In other words, it denotes that something is "little," either literally or figuratively. It is very occasionally used in a variety of informal and everyday terms.The form -kin comes from Middle English. Similar diminutives in English include -en (as in kitten) and -y (as in baby). Check out our entries for both suffixes to learn how frequently they appear.

Other Word Forms

  • kinless adjective

Etymology

Origin of kin1

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English cyn; cognate with Old Saxon, Old High German kunni, Old Norse kyn, Gothic kuni; akin to Latin genus, Greek génos, Sanskrit jánas; gender 1.

Origin of -kin2

Middle English < Middle Dutch, Middle Low German -ken; cognate with German -chen

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.

How does one go about helping a very elderly man who has only me as his next of kin?

From MarketWatch • Mar. 21, 2026

On behalf of Bosh's next of kin, Mark Stewart KC said: "People might wonder and ask why it is that police officers who are armed do not shoot to injure by shooting an extremity."

From BBC • Mar. 17, 2026

Identities of the deceased service members will be withheld for 24 hours after next of kin is informed.

From Salon • Mar. 13, 2026

A local magistrate ordered that the bodies be handed over to the Iranian embassy in Colombo for repatriation to the next of kin.

From Barron's • Mar. 13, 2026

And they’d welcomed me like I was kin.

From "Willodeen" by Katherine Applegate

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.