brother-in-law

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English brother in law(e); see origin at brother, in, law¹; from Middle English in-lawe “in law,” i.e., “a person within the regulation and protection of the law,” based on the prohibition by Roman civil law and, later, Christian canon law, of marriages within four degrees of consanguinity, i.e., up to and including first cousins

Words nearby brother-in-law

bro talk, broth, brothel, brother, brotherhood, brother-in-law, Brother Jonathan, brotherly, Brother of the Christian Schools, brother's keeper, Am I my, brotula

How to use brother-in-law in a sentence

Unless there is a court decision that changes our law, we are OK.
Jeb Bush’s Unseen Anti-Gay Marriage Emails|Jackie Kucinich|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Submission is set in a France seven years from now that is dominated by a Muslim president intent on imposing Islamic law.
Houellebecq’s Incendiary Novel Imagines France With a Muslim President|Pierre Assouline|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
A few days later, Bush replied, “We will uphold the law in Florida.”
Jeb Bush’s Unseen Anti-Gay Marriage Emails|Jackie Kucinich|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
To those who agreed with him, Bush pledged that the law against same-sex marriage would remain intact.
Jeb Bush’s Unseen Anti-Gay Marriage Emails|Jackie Kucinich|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST

In Israel, however, a new law took effect January 1st that banned the use of underweight models.
How Skinny Is Too Skinny? Israel Bans ‘Underweight’ Models|Carrie Arnold|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
We should have to admit that the new law does little or nothing to relieve such a situation.
Readings in Money and Banking|Chester Arthur Phillips
He that seeketh the law, shall be filled with it: and he that dealeth deceitfully, shall meet with a stumblingblock therein.
The Bible, Douay-Rheims Version|Various
To Harrison and his wife there was no distinction between the executive and judicial branches of the law.
The Bondboy|George W. (George Washington) Ogden
Now this setting up of an orderly law-abiding self seems to me to imply that there are impulses which make for order.
Children's Ways|James Sully
These schools became affiliated Universities, but never equalled the Law University in importance.
The Mediaeval Mind (Volume II of II)|Henry Osborn Taylor

British Dictionary definitions for brother-in-law

brother-in-law

noun plural brothers-in-law

the brother of one's wife or husband

the husband of one's sister

the husband of the sister of one's husband or wife

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

brother-in-law

Origin of brother-in-law

Words nearby brother-in-law

Words related to brother-in-law

How to use brother-in-law in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for brother-in-law