kin
- of the same family; related; akin.
- of the same kind or nature; having affinity.
- of kin, of the same family; related; akin: Although their surnames are identical they are not of kin.
Origin of kin
-kin
- a diminutive suffix of nouns: lambkin.
Origin of -kin
Examples from the Web for kin
Contemporary Examples
Earlier that day, officials say, Stone went on a bloody rampage killing six of his kin and wreaking havoc in three small towns.
Here it is, in the faces of the victims, in the stories of bravery, in the souls and memory of the survivors, the next of kin.
Outstripping the ironieteken, the temherte slaq, and their kin by far is the most remarked and reviled irony mark to date.
Late Monday night the FBI released the identities of seven of the deceased whose next of kin had been notified.
Investigators Search for Clues to What Motivated Navy Yard Shooter Aaron AlexisBen Jacobs, Miranda Green
September 17, 2013
In exchange, the community and government recognize the pair as next of kin and give them the tools they need to do their duty.
Historical Examples
If these guests were kin of his, they were welcome for his sake.
The Armourer's PrenticesCharlotte M. Yonge
It may be that, as some small return, my father or his kin may have power to advance your interest.
The White CompanyArthur Conan Doyle
Theyclaimed to be kin to us, and they cared nothing for Man even when they smelled him.
The Trail BookMary Austin
S' fur 's the pitcher goes, it's about as good 's kin be did with paint, I guess.
Chip, of the Flying UB. M. Bower
"Does beat all how she kin do it," thought Wade, listlessly.
DustMr. and Mrs. Haldeman-Julius
kin
- a person's relatives collectively; kindred
- a class or group with similar characteristics
- See next of kin
- (postpositive) related by blood
- a less common word for akin
Word Origin
-kin
- smalllambkin
Word Origin
Word Origin and History for kin
n.
c.1200, from Old English cynn "family; race; kind, sort, rank; nature; gender, sex," from Proto-Germanic *kunjam "family" (cf. Old Frisian kenn, Old Saxon kunni, Old Norse kyn, Old High German chunni "kin, race;" Danish and Swedish kön, Middle Dutch, Dutch kunne "sex, gender;" Gothic kuni "family, race," Old Norse kundr "son," German Kind "child"), from PIE *gen(e)- "to produce" (see genus).
-kin
diminutive suffix, first attested late 12c. in proper names adopted from Flanders and Holland, probably from Middle Dutch -kin, properly a double-diminutive, from -k + -in. Equivalent to German -chen. Also borrowed in Old French as -quin, where it usually has a bad sense.
This suffix, which is almost barren in French, has been more largely developed in the Picard patois, which uses it for new forms, such as verquin, a shabby little glass (verre); painequin, a bad little loaf (pain); Pierrequin poor little Pierre, &c. ["An Etymological Dictionary of the French Language," transl. G.W. Kitchin, Oxford, 1878]
Used in later Middle English with common nouns. In some words it is directly from Dutch or Flemish.
Idioms and Phrases with kin
kin
see kith and kin.