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 uncle

4

capitalized : 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

Her uncle skied across maybe 40 times and never once made it. —Anna Fiorentino, Smithsonian Magazine, 18 Apr. 2025

Prior to going to war, Dorrigo is engaged to Ella (Olivia DeJonge) but falls into an all-consuming affair with his uncle’s wife Amy, played by Odessa Young. —Vincent Perella, IndieWire, 17 Apr. 2025

Fred Ottman, the man known as Typhoon, is the uncle of Cody and Dustin Rhodes. —Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 16 Apr. 2025

Survivors include his husband, Sean; his brother, Steve (and his companion, Linda); his nephews, Rudy (Darcy) and Phil; his niece, Christina; and his uncle, Gerald. —Mike Barnes, HollywoodReporter, 15 Apr. 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
• 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