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

Siblings La Toya, Marlon, Jermaine and Jackie Jackson were all in attendance not only for the movie itself but also for Jaafar Jackson, Michael Jackson’s nephew (and Jermaine Jackson’s son) who transforms into his uncle in the biopic. —Kirsten Chuba, HollywoodReporter, 21 Apr. 2026

Luke plays Uncle Lou, who is sharp, charismatic, and singularly focused on monetizing his nephew and star football player Demetrius’ talent. —Matt Grobar, Deadline, 21 Apr. 2026

The film features the late superstar’s own nephew Jafaar Jackson in the titular role and in his feature film debut. —Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 21 Apr. 2026

Christine Snow was the mother of three others, and the eighth child was Elkins' nephew. —Arkansas Online, 21 Apr. 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