uncle

noun un·cle \ ˈəŋ-kəl \

Definition of uncle

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

See uncle defined for English-language learners

See uncle defined for kids

Examples of uncle in a Sentence

I have three uncles and two aunts.
My Uncle David is visiting next week.

Recent Examples of uncle from the Web

And hey, because John does this sort of thing often, here are more thirst-trap 'grams from everyone's favorite rock star uncle. Lucky you!

— jillian selzer, Cosmopolitan, "Literally Just a Pic of John Stamos's Butt," 22 Aug. 2017
My father and my uncle both at different times worked for the company.

— nancy stearns theiss, The Courier-Journal, "Entertainment on the L&N railroad fond memories for residents," 8 Aug. 2017
Amid the upheaval of the military coup that overthrew his uncle, King Constantine, in 1922, the family fled.

— Bloomberg.com, "Prince Philip, 96, Bids Adieu With Final Solo Official Duty," 2 Aug. 2017
His two sisters played for Italy’s national volleyball team, and his uncle played for Italy’s national basketball team.

— walter villa, miamiherald, "Juventus goalie may be the best ever," 25 July 2017
In 1922, Philip's uncle, the king of Greece, was forced to abdicate after the debacle of the Greco-Turkish War.

— katie jones, Town & Country, "Prince Philip's Tragic Childhood," 24 July 2017
Each report said that police attempted to contact an uncle from one missing teen but received no response.

— peter hermann, Washington Post, "Six members of African robotics team remain missing after competition," 20 July 2017
Mohammed bin Nayef was replaced as interior minister by his 33-year-old nephew, Prince Abdulaziz bin Saud bin Nayef, who was an adviser to his uncle and who is believed to be close to Mohammed bin Salman.

— ben hubbard, mark mazzetti and eric schmitt, New York Times, "Saudi King’s Son Plotted Effort to Oust His Rival," 18 July 2017
After Donald Trump’s revised travel ban was implemented in late June, certain grandparents, grandchildren, cousins, aunts, and uncles in six Muslim-majority countries were banned from visiting their relatives living in the U.S.

— lisa ryan, The Cut, "This Instagram Account Is Posting Photos of Grandparents Affected by the Travel Ban," 10 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'uncle.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of uncle

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin avunculus mother's brother; akin to Old English ēam uncle, Welsh ewythr, Latin avus grandfather

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First Known Use: 14th century

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UNCLE Defined for English Language Learners

uncle

noun

Definition of uncle for English Language Learners

: the brother of your father or mother or the husband of your aunt
—used as a word that you say when you are being hurt in a fight to show that you admit being defeated and do not want to continue fighting

UNCLE Defined for Kids

uncle

noun un·cle \ ˈəŋ-kəl \

Definition of uncle for Students

1 :the brother of a person's father or mother

2 :the husband of a person's aunt

Learn More about uncle

See words that rhyme with uncle Spanish Central: Translation of uncle Nglish: Translation of uncle for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of uncle for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about uncle

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uncle

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UNCLE Defined for English Language Learners

uncle

Definition of uncle for English Language Learners

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uncle

Definition of uncle for Students

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