in-law
Use In-law in a sentence
noun
a relative by marriage.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To in-law
Collins
World English Dictionary
| in-law | |
| —n | |
| 1. | a relative by marriage |
| —adj | |
| 2. | (postpositive; in combination) related by marriage: a father-in-law |
| [C19: back formation from father-in-law, etc] | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
00:10
In-law
is always a great word to know.
So is ninnyhammer. Does it mean:
| a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question. |
| a fool or simpleton; ninny. |
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
in-law
1894, "anyone of a relationship not natural," abstracted from father-in-law, etc.
"The position of the 'in-laws' (a happy phrase which is attributed ... to her Majesty, than whom no one can be better acquainted with the article) is often not very apt to promote happiness." ["Blackwood's Magazine," 1894]The earliest recorded use of the phrase is in brother-in-law (13c.); the law is Canon Law, which defines degrees of relationship within which marriage is prohibited.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Example sentences
My sister and brother-in-law are suitably awestruck.
My sister-in-law bought a bunch of holiday-themed fabrics, and sewed them into bags.
Nearby Words
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