1
2
: one associated with or related to another : counterpart
Rural children deserve as good an education as their city cousins get.—
Benjamin Fine
Benjamin Fine3
—used as a title by a sovereign in addressing a nobleman
4
: a member of a group regarded as ethnically or culturally related
our English cousins
Examples of cousin in a Sentence
Everyone came to the wedding, including a distant cousin no one had heard from in years.
The cricket is a cousin of the grasshopper.
hurricanes and their cousins, typhoons
Recent Examples on the Web
The car was later traced to Middletown, where it was being driven by Jones’ cousin.
—Quinlan Bentley, The Enquirer, 13 Apr. 2024
But soon entrepreneurs trying to win legal licenses were sounding alarms, too; even Ms. Brewer’s own cousin, who had signed up to be a licensed grower upstate, gave her an earful.
—Nicholas Fandos, New York Times, 12 Apr. 2024
That same year, in February 2016, Sydney and her brother Justin attended the wedding of their cousin, Sean Brown, who is Nicole’s sister Denise Brown's son, in Newport Coast, California.
—Rebecca Aizin, Peoplemag, 11 Apr. 2024
More from Advice Ask Sahaj: My cousin was my bestie.
—Meghan Leahy, Washington Post, 10 Apr. 2024
Death row inmate execution:Alabama looks to perform second execution of inmate with controversial nitrogen hypoxia
Brian Dorsey charged in 2006 double-murder
Dorsey was convicted of murdering his cousin Sarah Bonnie and her husband, Ben Bonnie, on December 23, 2006.
—Sarah Al-Arshani, USA TODAY, 9 Apr. 2024
The officers were joined by some family members, including cousin Jenni Gerhauser, in opposing his execution.
—Dennis Romero, NBC News, 9 Apr. 2024
Garrison's funeral was held on March 8, per his cousin Emma Brown's post on Instagram.
—Esme Mazzeo, Peoplemag, 30 Mar. 2024
My sister’s family also moved nearby, and the cousin sleepovers have given me the option of a night away.
—Carolyn Hax, Washington Post, 29 Mar. 2024
Quinlan Bentley, The Enquirer, 13 Apr. 2024
But soon entrepreneurs trying to win legal licenses were sounding alarms, too; even Ms. Brewer’s own cousin, who had signed up to be a licensed grower upstate, gave her an earful.
—Nicholas Fandos, New York Times, 12 Apr. 2024
That same year, in February 2016, Sydney and her brother Justin attended the wedding of their cousin, Sean Brown, who is Nicole’s sister Denise Brown's son, in Newport Coast, California.
—Rebecca Aizin, Peoplemag, 11 Apr. 2024
More from Advice Ask Sahaj: My cousin was my bestie.
—Meghan Leahy, Washington Post, 10 Apr. 2024
Death row inmate execution:Alabama looks to perform second execution of inmate with controversial nitrogen hypoxia
Brian Dorsey charged in 2006 double-murder
Dorsey was convicted of murdering his cousin Sarah Bonnie and her husband, Ben Bonnie, on December 23, 2006.
—Sarah Al-Arshani, USA TODAY, 9 Apr. 2024
The officers were joined by some family members, including cousin Jenni Gerhauser, in opposing his execution.
—Dennis Romero, NBC News, 9 Apr. 2024
Garrison's funeral was held on March 8, per his cousin Emma Brown's post on Instagram.
—Esme Mazzeo, Peoplemag, 30 Mar. 2024
My sister’s family also moved nearby, and the cousin sleepovers have given me the option of a night away.
—Carolyn Hax, Washington Post, 29 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'cousin.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Phrases Containing cousin
Articles Related to cousin
Dictionary Entries Near cousin
Cite this Entry
“Cousin.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cousin. Accessed 16 Apr. 2024.
Copy Citation
Kids Definition
cousin
noun
cous·in
ˈkəz-ᵊn 
1
a
: a child of one's uncle or aunt
b
: a relative descended from a common ancestor
2
: a person of a race or people ethnically or culturally related
our English cousins
Biographical Definition
More from Merriam-Webster on cousin
Nglish: Translation of cousin for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of cousin for Arabic Speakers
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about cousin
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