second cousin

noun

1. a child of a first cousin of one's parent.

second cousin

noun

1. the child of a first cousin of either of one's parents

Word History and Origins

Origin of second cousin¹

First recorded in 1650–60

Idioms and Phrases

Something that is related or similar but not quite the same, as in This beef stew is second cousin to boeuf bourguignon. This expression transfers the literal sense of second cousin —that is, the child of the first cousin of one's mother or father—a usage dating from the mid-1600s.

Example Sentences

In her essay, Schlossberg describes her alarm at watching her second cousin be approved to the post as she was battling her illness.

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I see my great-aunts fanning themselves and my second cousins chugging water.

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"We have been lucky enough to play here, and cousins and second cousins."

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He’s meeting a Portsmouth ship arriving from India bearing his second cousin, Angela and — a surprise to Lenox — her lifelong friend and companion, an Indian girl named Sari.

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"It's hard to have a 'special' child. We love them the same, but we suffer for them," says Inés, who is married to a second cousin.

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