/ˈʌŋ.kl̩/
- The brother or brother-in-law of one’s parent.
“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 nurs”
- The male cousin of one’s parent.
- endearingUsed as a fictive kinship title for a close male friend of one's parent or parents.
- euphemisticUsed as a title for the male companion to one's (usually unmarried) parent.
- figurativelyA source of advice, encouragement, or help.
- British, dated, informalA pawnbroker.
“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 , tho”
- especiallyAn affectionate term for a man of an older generation than oneself, especially a friend of one's parents, by means of fictive kin.
- Southern-US, archaic, slangAn older African-American male.
“Plain old uncle as he [Socrates] was, with his great ears, — an immense talker.”
- Brunei, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, informalAny middle-aged or elderly man older than the speaker and/or listener.
- radiotelephony clear-code word for the letter U.
- US, colloquialA cry used to indicate surrender.
- colloquial, transitiveTo address somebody by the term uncle.
- colloquial, intransitiveTo act like, or as, an uncle.
“Betelgeuse Five, where he both fathered and uncled Ford”
Formsuncles(plural) · uncles(present, singular, third-person) · uncling(participle, present) · uncled(participle, past) · uncled(past)