brother-in-law

noun

broth·​er-in-law ˈbrə-t͟hər-ən-ˌlȯ 

ˈbrət͟h-rən-, 

ˈbrə-t͟hərn-

plural brothers-in-law ˈbrə-t͟hərz-ən- 

1

: the brother of one's spouse

2

a

: the husband of one's sibling

b

: the husband of one's spouse's sibling

Examples of brother-in-law in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Bhatia’s brother-in-law Aditya Mittal, now CEO of the family steel business, ArcelorMittal, has just invested $1billion in private-equity firm boss Bill Chisholm’s takeover of basketball’s Boston Celtics. — Matt Slater, New York Times, 24 July 2026

Himesh Patel has worked with Nolan on two projects — once, as an arms dealer in Tenet, and a second time as Eurylochus, Odysseus’ brother-in-law and second-in-command in The Odyssey. — Emma Urdangen, PEOPLE, 18 July 2026

Her brother-in-law Prince William appeared on the third season of The Reluctant Traveler With Eugene Levy, which is up for two Primetime Emmys. — Hannah Malach, InStyle, 17 July 2026

Ohai's brother-in-law is Watt's former Houston Texans teammate, Brian Cushing. — Ryan Morik, FOXNews.com, 16 July 2026

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for brother-in-law

• avoirdupois
• aa
• aha
• bashaw
• bradshaw
• byelaw
• bylaw
• chainsaw
• cheraw
• coleslaw
• crenshaw
• dada

Kids Definition

brother-in-law

noun

broth·​er-in-law

ˈbrət͟h-(ə-)rən-ˌlȯ, 

ˈbrət͟h-ərn-ˌlȯ

plural brothers-in-law

ˈbrət͟h-ər-zən-

1

: the brother of one's spouse

2

: the husband of one's sibling or of one's spouse's sibling