uncle

Etymology

From Middle English uncle, borrowed from Anglo-Norman uncle and Old French oncle, from Vulgar Latin *aunclum, from Latin avunculus (“maternal uncle”, literally “little grandfather”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂euh₂-n-tlo- (“little grandfather”), a dialectal diminutive of *h₂éwh₂ō (“grandfather, adult male relative other than one’s father”) (whence also Latin avus (“grandfather”)). Displaced native Middle English em (“uncle”) from Old English ēam (“maternal uncle”), containing the same Proto-Indo-European root, and Old English fædera (“paternal uncle”). Compare Saterland Frisian Unkel (“uncle”), Dutch nonkel (“uncle”), German Low German Unkel (“uncle”), German Onkel (“uncle”), Danish onkel (“uncle”). More at eam and eame.

Pronunciation

• enPR: ŭngʹkəl, IPA^(key): /ˈʌŋ.kl̩/

• Audio (UK):

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• Audio (US):

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• Rhymes: -ʌŋkəl

Noun

uncle (plural uncles)

2. The brother or brother-in-law of one’s parent.
   • 1907 August, Robert W[illiam] Chambers, chapter I, in The Younger Set, New York, N.Y.: D. Appleton & Company, →OCLC, page 14:

     And it was while all were passionately intent upon the pleasing and snake-like progress of their uncle that a young girl in furs, ascending the stairs two at a time, peeped perfunctorily into the nursery as she passed the hallway—and halted amazed.

3. The male cousin of one’s parent.
4. (endearing) Used as a fictive kinship title for a close male friend of one's parent or parents.
5. (euphemistic) Used as a title for the male companion to one's (usually unmarried) parent.
6. (figuratively) A source of advice, encouragement, or help.
7. (British, informal, dated) A pawnbroker.
   • December 1843, William Makepeace Thackeray, "Grant in Paris" (review), in Fraser's Magazine

     A chain hangs out of the pocket of his velvet waistcoat , by which we may conclude that he has a watch , though we have known many gents whose watches were at their uncle's (as the fashionable term for the pawnbroker goes)

8. (especially in the Southern US, parts of UK and South Asia) An affectionate term for a man of an older generation than oneself, especially a friend of one's parents, by means of fictive kin.
9. (Southern US, slang, archaic) An older African-American male.
   • 1850, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Representative Men:

     Plain old uncle as he [Socrates] was, with his great ears, — an immense talker.

10. (Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Brunei, informal) Any middle-aged or elderly man older than the speaker and/or listener.

Interjection

uncle

1. (US, colloquial) A cry used to indicate surrender.

Verb

uncle (third-person singular simple present uncles, present participle uncling, simple past and past participle uncled)

1. (transitive, colloquial) To address somebody by the term uncle.
2. (intransitive, colloquial) To act like, or as, an uncle.
   • 1979, Douglas Adams, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy:

     Betelgeuse Five, where he both fathered and uncled Ford

References

• Douglas Harper (2001–2025) “uncle”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.
• “uncle”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.

Anagrams

• Clune

Alternative forms

• hunckyl, oncle, oncyll, ownkyll, uncul, uncull, unkele, unkle, unkyll

Etymology

Borrowed from Anglo-Norman uncle, from Vulgar Latin *aunclum, from Latin avunculus.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈunklə/, /ˈunkəl/

Noun

uncle (plural uncles or (rare) unclen)

1. uncle (brother of one's parents)

   Synonym: em

Etymology

From Vulgar Latin *aunclum, from Latin avunculus (“maternal uncle”, literally “little grandfather”).

Noun

uncle oblique singular, m (oblique plural uncles, nominative singular uncles, nominative plural uncle)

1. (Anglo-Norman) Alternative form of oncle
   • c. 1170, Wace, Le Roman de Rou:

     D'ambes parz out filz e peres,
     uncles, nevos, cosins e freres

     On both sides there were sons and fathers,
     Uncles, nephews, cousins and brothers

   • c. 1250, Marie de France, Chevrefeuille:

     Tristram en Wales se rala, tant que sis uncles le manda

     Tristan returned to Wales, while he waited for his uncle to call on him

Alternative forms

• unkl, uncill, uncul, unkle, unckle, unkill, unckill, unkel, unkell, unckell, unkyll, unkll, unqil, unqill, wncle, wnkill, wnckill, wnkyll, wnkle, wnckle, wnckell, wankall

Etymology

From Middle English uncle, borrowed from Anglo-Norman uncle and Old French oncle, from Vulgar Latin *aunclum, from Latin avunculus (“maternal uncle”, literally “little grandfather”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ewh₂-n-tlo- (“little grandfather”), a dialectal diminutive of *h₂éwh₂ō (“grandfather, adult male relative other than one’s father”) (whence also Latin avus (“grandfather”)).

Noun

uncle (plural uncles)

1. uncle

References

• “uncle”, in The Dictionary of the Scots Language, Edinburgh: Scottish Language Dictionaries, 2004–present, →OCLC.