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

The engineer flew in from Tampa to try and find her mother, sister, brother-in-law and nephew in the ruins of their nine-story apartment building, sleeping on the ground since arriving two nights ago. — Isa Soares, CNN Money, 1 July 2026

The funeral mourners Wednesday morning included Mohammad Ashfaq, a laborer whose 7-year-old son and nephew were killed in the collapse. — ABC News, 1 July 2026

Hundreds of comments poured in from others, looking for their parents, children, nieces and nephews, aunts and uncles. — Syra Ortiz Blanes, Miami Herald, 30 June 2026

The nephew of Hamtramck Mayor Adam Alhabri was found dead in Menands, New York, according to authorities. — Dejanay Booth-Singleton, CBS News, 30 June 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