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/say uncle [=was forced to surrender]

4

Uncle : 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

The woman is Grace, a Manhattan author who has moved to the rural middle of nowhere to be close to the family of her husband (Pattison), who has inherited his uncle’s house. —Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 7 Nov. 2025

Fans got a glimpse of Jaafar in the role during the November 2025 teaser trailer, which showed the first footage of the young star replicating his uncle's iconic choreography. —Skyler Caruso, PEOPLE, 7 Nov. 2025

Every Black person has an uncle who is hard-core about racial justice, and mine was equally hard-core in his disapproval of Sammy’s choice. —Questlove, The Atlantic, 7 Nov. 2025

The minute-long teaser is heavy on performance footage, with Jaafar Jackson adopting the famous outfits and dance moves that made his uncle famous. —Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 7 Nov. 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
• cry/say 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