Kin

/kɪn/ noun

Definition

Family members or relatives; people who are related to you by blood or marriage.

Etymology

From Old English 'cynn,' related to Germanic and Indo-European roots meaning family or race. The word has been used to describe relatives since before 1000 CE. It's related to the word 'king,' as both derive from roots meaning those of the same family or tribe.

Kelly Says

The word 'kin' is connected to 'king' because in ancient societies, a king was literally the leader of the family/tribe—the idea was that the king was 'kin' to all his people, which is where we get the word!

Related Words

Explore More Words

Get the Word Orb API

Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.