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uncle

Noun CEFR A2 Common
ˈʌŋ.kl̩

Definitions

  1. radiotelephony clear-code word for the letter U.
  2. uncle (the brother, brother-in-law, or male cousin or cousin-in-law of either parent)
  3. The brother or brother-in-law of one’s parent.
  4. To indicate a willingness to give up a fight or surrender: tickled my brother until he cried uncle.
  5. unknown or any male person, dude, guy
  6. The male cousin of one’s parent.
  7. say or cry uncle, to concede defeat.
  8. friend, mate, pal, man, bro
  9. Used as a fictive kinship title for a close male friend of one's parent or parents.
  10. the brother of a person's father or mother, or the husband of an aunt. He's my uncle; Hallo, Uncle Jim! oom عَم، خال чичи tio strýc der Onkel onkel θείοςtío onu عمو یا دایی؛ شوهر خاله یا شوهر عمه setä oncleדוד चाचा, मामा, फूफा, मौसा ujak nagybácsi paman föðurbróðir; móðurbróðir; frændi zio おじ 삼촌, 백부, 숙부 dėdė tēvocis pakcik oomonkel, far-/morbror wuj اكا، كاكا، تره، ماما، دترور مېړه tio unchi дядя strýko, ujo stric ujak ili stric farbror, morbror ลุง amca, dayı 伯父,叔父,舅父 дядько چچا، ماموں، خالو...
  11. mister (title conferred on an adult male)
  12. Used as a title for the male companion to one's (usually unmarried) parent.
  13. The brother of one's mother or father.
  14. A source of advice, encouragement, or help.
  15. Used as a form of address for an older man, especially by children.
  16. A pawnbroker.
  17. A kindly counselor.
  18. An affectionate term for a man of an older generation than oneself, especially a friend of one's parents, by means of fictive kin.
  19. Slang A pawnbroker.
  20. An older African-American male.
    Southern-US, archaic, slang
  21. Uncle Uncle Sam.
  22. Any middle-aged or elderly man older than the speaker and/or listener.
  23. a brother of one's father or mother
  24. the husband of one's aunt

Equivalents

Españoltío
Françaisoncletonton
DeutschOheimOnkel
64 more languages
አማርኛኣጎት
Azərbaycan dilidayıəmi
Беларускаядзядзька
Българскивуйчочичо
བོད་སྐད།ཨ་ཁུཨ་ཞང
Cymraegewythr
Esperantoonklo
Eestionu
Euskaraosaba
Gaeilgeuncail
Galegotío
ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻiʻanakalamakua kāne
עבריתדוד
Bahasa Indonesiabapakemangencekompaman
Íslenskafrændi
Italianozio
Kurdîagabacwujخال
ລາວລຸງ
Lietuviųdėdė
Te Reo Māorimatua kēkē
Македонскивујкострикотетинчичко
Монголавга ах
Bahasa Melayumamandapakcik
Maltiziju
پښتوماما
Portuguêstio
Românăunchi
Slovenčinastrýkoujo
Slovenščinastric
Türkmençeagadaýy
Українськадя́дькодядя
Tiếng Việtbáccậuchu

Examples

And it was while all were passionately intent upon the pleasing and snake-like progress of their uncle that a young girl in furs, ascending the stairs two at a time, peeped perfunctorily into the nursery as she passed the hallwayand halted amazed.”
December 1843, William Makepeace Thackeray, "Grant in Paris" (review), in Fraser's Magazine A chain hangs out of the pocket of his velvet waistcoat , by which we may conclude that he has a watch , though we have known many gents whose watches were at their uncle's (as the fashionable term for the pawnbroker goes)”
Plain old uncle as he [Socrates] was, with his great ears, — an immense talker.”

CEFR level

A2
Elementary
This word is part of the CEFR A2 vocabulary — elementary level.
See all A2 English words →

See also

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