The Meaning of Kin: What It Is and How To Use It

Have you ever been confused by the definition of kin? This article will give you all of the knowledge you need on the word kin, including its definition, etymology, synonyms and antonyms, example sentences, and more!

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What does the word kin mean?

According to Collins English Dictionary and the American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, kin can be used as a noun or an adjective to refer to a relative or someone who is related to you, as well as a family unit or entire family network of relatives. There are many different words, idioms and phrases that come from the word kin, including akin, kind, kindred, kinfolk, kinship, kinsman, kinstate, kinswoman, kith and kin, next of kin, close kin, otakukin, and otherkin. The word kin refers to a group of people that share a common ancestor or is related by marriage. This closest family member might be a spouse, sibling, parent, offspring, and more. People might also refer to their close friends in their primary social group as kin. It is also used in the bible to refer to the kin groups of Ancient Israel, known as the tribes of Israel or Sons of Jacob. Kin is also an internet slang term used in which someone roleplays – and may actually believe – they they are a fictional character such as anime characters in the anime community, or can refer to types of smartphones created by Microsoft that were designed to integrate social media. These were by Sharp and introduced by Verizon in May 2010, per Your Dictionary.

Many different languages also contain words that mean kin. You may notice that many of these translations of kin look and sound similar to the word kin. These are called cognates, which are words in phrases in different languages that look, sound and mean something similar. These are often formed when two words have the same root or language of origin. This list of translations for the word kin is provided by Word Sense

  •  Scottish Gaelic: càirdeas‎ (masc.)
  •  Faroese: ættarfólk‎ (n-p)
  •  Old Armenian: ցեղ‎, տոհմ‎, զարմ‎
  •  Japanese: 親族‎ (しんぞく, shinzoku)
  •  Slovene: sorodstvo‎ (neut.)
  •  Icelandic: ættmenni‎ (n-p), skyldmenni‎ (n-p)
  •  Portuguese: parentagem‎ (fem.)
  •  Maori: ngare‎, huānga‎
  •  Hungarian: rokonság‎
  •  German: Verwandtschaft‎ (fem.), Verwandte‎ (pl.)
  •  French: proche‎, parenté‎ (fem.)
  •  ǃXóõ: tâa‎, ǃkxʻái‎
  •  Mandarin: 親屬‎, 亲属‎ (qīnshǔ), 親族‎, 亲族‎ (qīnzú)
  •  Finnish: suku‎
  •  Russian: родня́‎ (fem.), родственник‎, родич‎, сородич‎
  •  Dutch: verwanten‎
  •  Tagalog: hinlog‎
  •  Greek: συγγενείς‎ (masc. pl.) (f-p), οικογένεια‎ (fem.)
  •  Yiddish: mishpachah, mishpocha

What is the origin of the word kin? 

According to Merriam-Webster, the word kin comes from the Middle English kin, kyn, ken, kun, which stem from the Old English cynn or Old English cyn. This word comes from the Proto-Germanic kunją and Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh. These create cognates in the Middle Dutch kin, Old High German chunni and Old High German kunni, High German kind child, Latin genus kind, Greek genos, Old Norse kyn family Latin gignere, Greek gignesthai, Scots kin‎, North Frisian kinn‎, kenn, Dutch kunne, Middle Low German kunne, Gothic kuni, Old Saxon kijn, Greek génos, Danish køn, Swedish kön, Icelandic kyn‎, Ancient Greek γένος, Sanskrit jánas, and Albanian dhen and chen. Many of these words mean gender, child, or family. This word is of Indo-European roots and West Germanic origin.

What are synonyms and antonyms of the word kin?

There are many different words that a person can use in place of the word kin. These are called synonyms, which are words and phrases that have the same meaning as another word or phrase. Learning synonyms is a great way to expand your English vocabulary or avoid repeating yourself. This list of synonyms of kin is provided by Power Thesaurus

  •  folks
  •  parents
  •  connate
  •  related
  •  akin
  •  race
  •  class
  •  blood-relationship
  •  kinship
  •  kinship group
  •  close
  •  family tie
  •  ancestry
  •  kinsman
  •  people
  •  blood-related
  •  niece
  •  house
  •  cousin
  •  line
  •  comparable
  •  breed
  •  analogous
  •  blood sister
  •  relationship
  •  kindred
  •  sib
  •  folk
  •  clan
  •  brood
  •  tribe
  •  aunt
  •  clansman
  •  household
  •  kith and kin
  •  congenial
  •  blood relation
  •  genus
  •  extended family
  •  blood relative
  •  kidney
  •  brother
  •  sort
  •  relatives
  •  kinsperson
  •  next of kin
  •  sister
  •  cognate
  •  germane
  •  affinity
  •  relations
  •  allied
  •  ilk
  •  kinswoman
  •  relative
  •  kinsfolk
  •  uterine kin
  •  connections
  •  connexion
  •  kin group
  •  brand
  •  kinfolk
  •  family member
  •  blood relationship
  •  stock
  •  category
  •  description
  •  species
  •  siblings
  •  blood relatives
  •  nuclear family
  •  ainga
  •  caste
  •  similar
  •  family
  •  agnate
  •  character
  •  consanguineal
  •  relation
  •  flesh and blood
  •  kind
  •  uncle
  •  descendant
  •  consanguineous
  •  lineage
  •  corresponding
  •  kinsmen
  •  connatural
  •  close relative
  •  sibling
  •  of the same family
  •  connection
  •  in-laws
  •  consanguinity
  •  blood
  •  nearest and dearest
  •  flesh
  •  kith
  •  consanguine
  •  consanguinean

There are also many different words that mean the opposite of the word kin. These are called antonyms. Learning antonyms is another great way to expand your vocabulary. This list of antonyms of kin is also provided by Power Thesaurus.

  •  distant
  •  extremely different
  •  origin
  •  ancestry
  •  distinctly different
  •  clearly distinct
  •  directly opposed
  •  considerably different
  •  diametrically opposite
  •  dramatically different
  •  diverse
  •  completely antipathetical
  •  other
  •  adopt
  •  as different as possible
  •  entirely different
  •  orphan
  •  having hell of a difference between
  •  greatly different
  •  different
  •  federal government
  •  dramatically changed
  •  distinguishable
  •  nonrelative
  •  absolutely distinct from
  •  predecessor
  •  diametrally opposite
  •  unalike
  •  greatly changed
  •  fundamentally different
  •  so different
  •  very differing
  •  qualitatively different
  •  markedly different
  •  vastly different
  •  not similar
  •  oppositely disposed
  •  radically different
  •  descent
  •  totally different
  •  significantly different
  •  disparate
  •  much different
  •  totally variable
  •  standing in sharp contrast
  •  slightly different
  •  birth
  •  distinct
  •  not looking like
  •  standing in stark contrast
  •  quite different
  •  sharply different
  •  very different
  •  widely different
  •  looking nothing like
  •  nothing like
  •  substantially different
  •  widely differing
  •  too dissimilar
  •  vastly varying
  •  not in line with
  •  dissimilar
  •  significantly varying
  •  obviously different
  •  aristocracy
  •  very diverse
  •  not of the same nature
  •  clearly different
  •  definitely different
  •  completely antipathetic
  •  disproportional
  •  extraction
  •  antipodean
  •  unlike
  •  greatly varying
  •  different from
  •  highly varied
  •  nonidentical
  •  in sharp contrast
  •  unrelated
  •  in opposition
  •  antipodal
  •  pedigree
  •  mutant
  •  basically different
  •  diametrically opposed
  •  in stark contrast

Overall, the word kin means family or relatives. This word is of Proto-Germanic and Proto-Indo-European origins.

Sources:

  1. kin: meaning, origin, translation | Word Sense 
  2. Kin synonyms – 662 Words and Phrases for Kin | Power Thesaurus 
  3. Kin antonyms – 87 Opposites of Kin | Power Thesaurus 
  4. Kin | Definition of Kin | Merriam-Webster 
  5. Kin Meaning | Best 21 Definitions of Kin | Your Dictionary