1
2
: one associated with or related to another : counterpart
Rural children deserve as good an education as their city cousins get.—
Benjamin Fine
Benjamin Fine3
—used as a title by a sovereign in addressing a nobleman
4
: a member of a group regarded as ethnically or culturally related
our English cousins
Examples of cousin in a Sentence
Everyone came to the wedding, including a distant cousin no one had heard from in years.
The cricket is a cousin of the grasshopper.
hurricanes and their cousins, typhoons
Recent Examples on the Web
Jamie Demetriou will play Mr. Collins, Mr. Bennet's cousin and presumptive heir to the Bennet family's Longbourn estate.
—Randall Colburn, EW.com, 1 Aug. 2025
Yet Kamehameha has his own rival in the form of his cousin Keōua (a lights-out fantastic Cliff Curtis), who wants to rule alone.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 1 Aug. 2025
In the comments section, the majority of Reddit users agreed that the bride's cousin was not at fault.
—Ashlyn Robinette, People.com, 1 Aug. 2025
John was also known as John Luke, a nickname his older cousin gave him.
—Damenica Ellis, Charlotte Observer, 1 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for cousin
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Randall Colburn, EW.com, 1 Aug. 2025
Yet Kamehameha has his own rival in the form of his cousin Keōua (a lights-out fantastic Cliff Curtis), who wants to rule alone.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 1 Aug. 2025
In the comments section, the majority of Reddit users agreed that the bride's cousin was not at fault.
—Ashlyn Robinette, People.com, 1 Aug. 2025
John was also known as John Luke, a nickname his older cousin gave him.
—Damenica Ellis, Charlotte Observer, 1 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for cousin
Cite this Entry
“Cousin.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cousin. Accessed 5 Aug. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
cousin
noun
cous·in
ˈkəz-ᵊn 
1
a
: a child of one's uncle or aunt
b
: a relative descended from a common ancestor
2
: a member of a group regarded as ethnically or culturally related
our English cousins
Biographical Definition
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