kin

1 of 3

noun

1
: a group of persons of common ancestry : clan
2
a
: one's relatives : kindred
our neighbors and their kin
close kin
b
: kinsman
he wasn't any kin to youJean Stafford
3
archaic : kinship

kin

2 of 3

adjective

-kin

3 of 3

noun suffix

kən
variants or less commonly -kins
kənz
: little
catkin
babykins

Examples of kin in a Sentence

Noun They are her distant kin. invited all of his kith and kin to his graduation party
Recent Examples on the Web
These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Noun
Liam Payne left his kin with a big inheritance before his death. Lea Veloso, StyleCaster, 21 Oct. 2024 That fan base inevitably could bode well for his kin’s next venture. Rosemary Feitelberg, WWD, 16 Oct. 2024
Adjective
Bennett’s musings have an ethical component: if a nuisance tree, or a dead tree, or a dead rat is my kin, then everything is kin—even a piece of trash. Morgan Meis, The New Yorker, 28 Feb. 2023 The Oscar winners have been friends for half a century and their kin span generations. Emily St. Martin, Los Angeles Times, 1 June 2023 See all Example Sentences for kin 

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, from Old English cynn; akin to Old High German chunni race, Latin genus birth, race, kind, Greek genos, Latin gignere to beget, Greek gignesthai to be born

Adjective

attributive use of kin entry 1

Noun suffix

Middle English, from Middle Dutch -kin; akin to Old High German -chīn, diminutive suffix

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1597, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of kin was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near kin

Cite this Entry

“Kin.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/kin. Accessed 8 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

kin

1 of 3 noun
1
: a person's relatives
2

kin

2 of 3 adjective
: being related : kindred

-kin

3 of 3 noun suffix
kən
variants also -kins
kənz
: little
often used in affectionate nicknames
babykins
Etymology

Noun suffix

Middle English -kin "little," from early Dutch -kin "little"

Legal Definition

kin

noun
: one's relatives
kinship noun

More from Merriam-Webster on kin

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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