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Synonyms

sibling

American  
[sib-ling] / ˈsɪb lɪŋ /

noun

  1. a brother or sister.

  2. Anthropology. a comember of a sib, a unilateral descent group thought to share kinship through a common ancestor.

adjective

  1. of or relating to a brother or sister.

    sibling rivalry.
sibling British  
/ ˈsɪblɪŋ /

noun

    1. a person's brother or sister

    2. ( as modifier )

      sibling rivalry

  2. any fellow member of a sib

"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

Other Word Forms

  • half-sibling noun

Etymology

Origin of sibling

before 1000; late Middle English: relative, Old English; sib, -ling 1

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.

The siblings found a route out of poverty by building up an empire of betting shops, amassing themselves a billion-pound family fortune after leaving school at 15 with no qualifications.

From BBC

Larvae that receive abundant food from older siblings develop high energy metabolism and become workers, which do not reproduce.

From Science Daily

Don’t miss: ‘I‘m facing an ethical dilemma’: My widowed mother is cutting my step siblings out of the family trust.

From MarketWatch

O'Hara is survived by her husband Bo Welch, her sons Matthew and Luke, and her six siblings.

From BBC

O’Hara is survived by her husband, Bo Welch, sons Matthew and Luke, and six siblings.

From The Wall Street Journal

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.