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great-aunt

American  
[greyt-ant, -ahnt] / ˈgreɪtˌænt, -ˌɑnt /

noun

  1. a grandaunt.


great-aunt British  

noun

  1. an aunt of one's father or mother; sister of one's grandfather or grandmother

"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

Etymology

Origin of great-aunt

First recorded in 1650–60

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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.

They were also third-degree relatives, suggesting a connection such as great-aunt and niece or cousins.

From Science Daily • Feb. 19, 2026

It was my late grandmother and my late great-aunt who found the house in Altadena, but no one knows exactly why they settled there.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 7, 2026

But her life took a devastating turn in September after Saabirin's great-aunt agreed that Diiriye's family, who needed a home help, could take her in.

From BBC • Dec. 28, 2025

The condition runs through the female line - Lucy's mum has IP although isn't blind, her Grandma did too and her great-aunt was blind in one eye.

From BBC • Apr. 19, 2025

She had been bitten, once, by an avanc—entirely her own fault, Leonor scolded, for getting too close—and it had gone septic, and her great-aunt had had to sit up with her for seven nights running.

From "Impossible Creatures" by Katherine Rundell