second cousin

American  

noun

• second cousins
  plural

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

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second cousin British  

noun

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

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second cousin Idioms  

1. 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.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• second cousins
  plural

Etymology

Origin of second cousin

First recorded in 1650–60

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

second cousin

No one — not his children or your nieces or the next-door neighbor’s second cousin twice removed — has a right to that money.

From MarketWatch ● Mar. 16, 2026

It turns out the city’s director of parks, Jason Kronsberg, is my second cousin, whom I arranged to meet for the first time at Waterfront Park.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 2, 2026

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.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 29, 2025

Patrick Casement, the great grandson of Roger's second cousin, still lives in the family home and has kept records of letters written by Roger during his time in Africa.

From BBC ● Nov. 30, 2024

I had an older second cousin in the Navy, stationed in Europe, whom I met only once in my childhood.

From "Drama High" by Michael Sokolove