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 uncle

4

capitalized : 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

What To Know Mary Trump, who has remained a vocal critic of her uncle's policies, raised alarms about the move in a new Substack post published on Thursday. —Andrew Stanton, MSNBC Newsweek, 15 Aug. 2025

Meanwhile, Jun’s aunt and uncle, Eleanor Rigby and Hey Jude, are sweetly careening through their own soundtrack, in their own dance-time, her cheek resting on his chest, his cheek resting atop her head. —Literary Hub, 15 Aug. 2025

In my family, there are allergies, dietary restrictions, and personal preferences to navigate—my uncle is pescatarian, my cousin is allergic to gluten, and others just have strong opinions. —Annabelle Canela, Parents, 14 Aug. 2025

Paul is my uncle, 46 years old, and owner of a dairy ranch a few miles south of Twin Bridges, Montana. —Fred C. Mercer, Outdoor Life, 14 Aug. 2025

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
• 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