uncle

noun

un·​cle ˈəŋ-kəl 

1

a

: the brother of one's father or mother

b

: the husband of one's aunt or uncle

2

: one who helps, advises, or encourages

3

—used as a cry of surrender

was forced to cry/say uncle [=was forced to surrender]

4

Uncle : uncle sam

Examples of uncle in a Sentence

I have three uncles and two aunts.

My Uncle David is visiting next week.

Recent Examples on the Web

The uncle alleged that the donations made by Yamagami’s mother, which by then totalled seven hundred thousand dollars, had been coerced. —E. Tammy Kim, New Yorker, 26 Jan. 2026

If America had a national uncle, Winslow might be a good choice. —Fred Schruers, Rolling Stone, 26 Jan. 2026

Over the subsequent stories, Goodman crafts subtle investigations of the relations between siblings, the fine blend of anxiety and pride parents feel for their offspring, and the bemused affection an aunt or uncle might feel for their aimless nieces or haphazard nephews. —Chloe Schama, Vogue, 24 Jan. 2026

Manuel interweaves other story strands with Isabel’s tale, including that of Clara (Carmen Castellanos), a young Filipina American from New York out for a round of golf with her uncle (Carlos Siguion-Reyna), the owner of a golfing company. —Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 24 Jan. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin avunculus mother's brother; akin to Old English ēam uncle, Welsh ewythr, Latin avus grandfather

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing uncle

• and Bob's your uncle
• cry/say uncle
• Dutch uncle
• great-uncle
• say uncle
• uncle-in-law

Rhymes for uncle

• carbuncle
• peduncle
• siphuncle

Kids Definition

uncle

noun

un·​cle ˈəŋ-kəl 

1

: the brother of one's father or mother

2

: the husband of one's aunt or uncle