nephew

noun

neph·​ew ˈne-(ˌ)fyü 

chiefly British -(ˌ)vyü

plural nephews

1

: a son of one's brother, sister, brother-in-law, or sister-in-law

2

obsolete : a lineal (see lineal sense 3) descendant

especially : grandson

Examples of nephew in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

While little is known about the nephew at this time, El Chapo is notorious for leading the Sinaloa Cartel and smuggling drugs into the United States. —David Zimmermann, The Washington Examiner, 26 May 2026

Audiences are still pouring in to see the singer-songwriter's nephew Jaafar portray the King of Pop and to hear many of his most celebrated tunes. —Hugh McIntyre, Forbes.com, 25 May 2026

Galaxy coach Greg Vanney has coached a family member before when his nephew Eriq Zavaleta played for him with Toronto FC and recently with the Galaxy. —Damian Calhoun, Daily News, 25 May 2026

His survivors include a nephew, Clifton Anderson, and nieces Vallyn Anderson and Gabrielle DeGroat. —ABC News, 25 May 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English nevew, from Anglo-French nevou, neveu, from Latin nepot-, nepos grandson, nephew; akin to Old English nefa grandson, nephew, Sanskrit napāt grandson

First Known Use

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

Phrases Containing nephew

• great-nephew

Kids Definition

nephew

noun

neph·​ew ˈnef-yü 

: a son of one's brother, sister, brother-in-law, or sister-in-law