in-law
Americannoun
noun
adjective
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of in-law
First recorded in 1890–95; back formation from mother-in-law, brother-in-law, etc.
Explanation
An in-law is someone who is a relative because of marriage, like your husband's sister or your wife's father. You can refer to your spouse's entire family as your in-laws. In some countries, a married woman moves in with her in-laws, symbolically becoming part of their family. In the U.S. some families live with extended family members — a man may live with his wife, kids, and his mother- and father-in-law — but more often each individual nuclear family lives separately. In-law originally meant "anyone of a relationship not natural" or "not by blood."
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.
See Examples For:
“We had made a decision that rather than long-term-care insurance, we had a house with an in-law suite,” Lanzoni said.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 7, 2026
But an in-law having Beckham in her surname means that David and Victoria no longer have full control of how the name is used.
From BBC ● Jan. 20, 2026
Sarraj reunited with other relatives, too, and said he learned of the deaths of an in-law, an uncle, a friend, his grandfather and a cousin, as well as the destruction of his home.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 25, 2025
“He speaks his mind. He’s great,” my favorite Missouri in-law tells me.
From Salon ● Apr. 10, 2025
I glanced across the floor and saw Dr. Roseberry Bokwe, one of the most respected African leaders and scholars of the time, chatting with his brother- in-law and my professor, Z. K. Matthews.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
Her in-laws had a different reaction: “We were showing them the house, and they got more irritated with every room — like, ‘You have books in here too?’
From Salon ● Jul. 23, 2026
But if it doesn’t affect them, why do Lex’s in-laws care how many books are in their house?
From Salon ● Jul. 23, 2026
When he recently took his in-laws to get fitted for new hearing aids, he popped open his laptop and used a hot spot to send emails and edit video in time to meet a deadline.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 23, 2026
He had been visiting his future in-laws and wanted to eat at an Italian deli and see Tony Soprano’s house before flying home.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 19, 2026
During a 1946 visit to his in-laws on Balboa Island, a resort spot south of Los Angeles, he conceived the idea of renting a home on the island for the summer.
From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik
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.
