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cousin
8 dictionary results for: Cousin
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
cous·in       [kuhz-uhn] Pronunciation Key
–noun
1.Also called first cousin, full cousin, cousin-german. the son or daughter of an uncle or aunt.
2.one related by descent in a diverging line from a known common ancestor, as from one's grandparent or from one's father's or mother's sister or brother.
3.a kinsman or kinswoman; relative.
4.a person or thing related to another by similar natures, languages, geographical proximity, etc.: Our Canadian cousins are a friendly people.
5.Slang. a gullible, innocent person who is easily duped or taken advantage of.
6.a term of address used by a sovereign in speaking, writing, or referring to another sovereign or a high-ranking noble.
[Origin: 1250–1300; ME cosin < AF co(u)sin, OF cosin < L consōbrīnus cousin (properly, son of one's mother's sister), equiv. to con- con- + sōbrīnus second cousin (presumably orig. “pertaining to the sister”) < *swesrīnos, equiv. to *swesr-, gradational var. of *swesōr (> soror sister) + *-īnos -ine1; for -sr- > -br- cf. December]

—Related forms
cous·in·age, cous·in·hood, cous·in·ship, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
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Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
Cou·sin       [koo-zan] Pronunciation Key
–noun
Vic·tor       [veek-tawr] Pronunciation Key, 1792–1867, French philosopher and educational reformer: founder of the method of eclecticism in French philosophy.
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
cous·in       (kŭz'ĭn)  Pronunciation Key 
n.  
  1. A child of one's aunt or uncle. Also called first cousin.
  2. A relative descended from a common ancestor, such as a grandparent, by two or more steps in a diverging line.
  3. A relative by blood or marriage; a kinsman or kinswoman.
  4. A member of a kindred group or country: our Canadian cousins.
  5. Something similar in quality or character: "There's no mistaking soca for its distant Jamaican cousin, reggae" (Michael Saunders).
  6. Used as a form of address by a sovereign in addressing another sovereign or a high-ranking member of the nobility.


[Middle English cosin, a relative, from Old French, from Latin cōnsōbrīnus, cousin : com-, com- + sōbrīnus, cousin on the mother's side; see swesor- in Indo-European roots.]

cous'in·hood' n., cous'in·ly adj., cous'in·ship' n.
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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
cousin 
1160, from O.Fr. cosin, from L. consobrinus "mother's sister's child," from com- "together" + sobrinus (earlier *sosrinos) "cousin on mother's side," from soror (gen. sororis) "sister." Used familiarly as a term of address since 1430, especially in Cornwall. Your first cousin (also cousin-german) is the son or daughter of an uncle or aunt; your children and your first cousin's are second cousins to one another; to you, your first cousin's children are first cousin once removed. Phrase kissing cousin is Southern U.S. expression, 1940s, denoting "those close enough to be kissed in salutation;" Kentish cousin (1796) is an old British term for "distant relative."

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
cousin

noun
the child of your aunt or uncle 

WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
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American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms - Cite This Source - Share This

cousin

see country cousin; first cousin; kissing cousins; second cousin.


The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Cousin

Cous"in\ (k?z"'n), n. [F. cousin, LL. cosinus, cusinus, contr. from L. consobrinus the child of a mother's sister, cousin; con- + sobrinus a cousin by the mother's side, a form derived fr. soror (forsosor) sister. See Sister, and cf. Cozen, Coz.]

1. One collaterally related more remotely than a brother or sister; especially, the son or daughter of an uncle or aunt.

Note: The children of brothers and sisters are usually denominated first cousins, or cousins-german. In the second generation, they are called second cousins. See Cater-cousin, and Quater-cousin.

Thou art, great lord, my father's sister's son, A cousin-german to great Priam's seed. --Shak.

2. A title formerly given by a king to a nobleman, particularly to those of the council. In English writs, etc., issued by the crown, it signifies any earl.

My noble lords and cousins, all, good morrow. --Shak.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Cousin

Cous"in\, n. Allied; akin. [Obs.] --Chaucer.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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