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:
A Palestinian official told the BBC Trump's son-in-law met a delegation led by Hamas's new leader Khalil al-Hayya in Egypt on Sunday.
From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026
Kushner, the brother of President Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, had his sights set on an NBA team.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026
Kushner, the younger brother of Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, owns a minority stake in the Miami Heat, which he bought in 2024 and must now sell to finalize the Lakers purchase.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
Bhatia is the son-in-law of Indian billionaire businessman Lakshmi Mittal and had been a director and co-owner of Queens Park Rangers for 18 years before relinquishing his stake in the club last month.
From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026
“It’s all right for you. You’re Portuguese. Among us, the son-in-law has to get the family’s permission—and arrange the roora. One day I saw Runako walking along the trail to our village. ‘What happened?’
From "A Girl Named Disaster" by Nancy Farmer
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
Ledesma is survived by his wife, two daughters, two sons-in-law, and three grandchildren.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 3, 2023
Every last one of his sons-in-law was a kid; he could see that clearly.
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.
