cousinhood

cous·in

 (kŭz′ĭn)

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.

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[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.]

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cous′in·hood′ n.

cous′in·ly adj.

cous′in·ship′ n.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.