son-in-law
Americannoun
-
sons-in-law
plural
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of son-in-law
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English sone in lawe; see origin at son, in, law 1; from Middle English in-lawe “in law,” i.e., “a person within the regulation and protection of the law,” based on the prohibition by Roman civil law and, later, Christian canon law, of marriages within four degrees of consanguinity, i.e., up to and including first cousins
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:
They also said their son-in-law had suffered from worsening post-traumatic stress disorder.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2026
US President Donald Trump's business partner Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner visited Moscow in hopes of reviving negotiations to end Europe's worst conflict since WWII.
From Barron's ● Sep. 6, 2026
The brother of US President Donald Trump's son-in-law, Kushner added he had "failed to appreciate the political dynamics of global football".
From BBC ● Aug. 31, 2026
Later, Collins said his son-in-law “has had no role in my campaign whatsoever, and I don’t believe or support those views.”
From Slate ● Aug. 27, 2026
This was the first compliment the father-in-law had ever paid any son-in-law in the family.
From "How the García Girls Lost Their Accents" by Julia Alvarez
Every year, we give each of our daughters and sons-in-law $100 for their birthdays.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 1, 2026
The couple are survived by their daughters, sons-in-law and grandchildren, the trust said.
From BBC ● Jan. 4, 2026
The same masters, however, often changed the rules of their guild so that only the sons and sons-in-law of current masters could become masters themselves.
From Textbooks ● Apr. 19, 2023
When the funeral home van came to gather his body from his home, he was carried out by one of his sons-in-law, Jack Landherr’s father, John, and a sportswriter, this one.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 29, 2022
Then there were the men gifts—belts and credit card wallets from the sons-in-law.
From "How the García Girls Lost Their Accents" by Julia Alvarez
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.
