Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A blood relation; a relative.
  • noun A person's relatives considered as a group; kinfolk.
  • noun A brother or sister; a sibling.
  • noun Anthropology A kinship group consisting of two or more lineages considered as being related, as by common descent from a mythic ancestor.
  • adjective Related by blood; kindred.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • Having kinship or relationship; related by consanguinity; having affinity; akin; kindred.
  • noun Kindred; kin; kinsmen; a body of persons related by blood in any degree.
  • noun A kinsman; a relative, near or remote; hence, one closely allied to another; an intimate companion.
  • To bring into relation; establish a relationship between; make friendly.
  • noun An abbreviation of Siberia
  • noun of Siberian.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun obsolete A blood relation.
  • noun a sibling.
  • adjective Obs. or Prov. Eng. & Scot. Related by blood; akin.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • adjective Having kinship or relationship; related by same-bloodedness; having affinity; being akin; kindred.
  • verb transitive To bring into relation; establish a relationship between; make friendly; reconcile.
  • noun Kindred; kin; kinsmen; a body of persons related by blood in any degree.
  • noun A kinsman; a blood relation; a relative, near or remote; one closely allied to another; an intimate companion.
  • noun A sibling, brother or sister (irrespective of gender)
  • noun biology Any group of animals or plants sharing a corresponding genetic relation
  • noun A group of individuals unilaterally descended from a single (real or postulated) common ancestor

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a person's brother or sister
  • noun one related by blood or origin; especially on sharing an ancestor with another

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English sibbe, from Old English sibb; see s(w)e- in Indo-European roots.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Middle English sib, from Old English sibb ("related, akin, sib"), from Proto-Germanic *sibjaz (“related”), from Proto-Indo-European *sebʰ-, *swebʰ- (“one's own”). Cognate with West Frisian besibbe ("related"), Middle Dutch sibbe ("related"), Middle Low German sibbe ("related"), Middle High German sippe ("related"), Icelandic sifi ("related").

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Middle English *sibben, *sibbien, from Old English sibbian ("to make peace; rejoice"), from Proto-Germanic *sibjōnan (“to reconcile”), Proto-Indo-European *sebʰ-, *swebʰ- (“one's own”). Cognate with German sippen ("to be in relationship with, become related to").

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Middle English sib, sibbe, from Old English sibb ("relationship; gossip; friendliness, kindness; love, friendship, peace, concord, unity, tranquility; peace of mind; a relative, kinsman, kinswoman"), from Proto-Germanic *sibjō (“kinship”), from Proto-Indo-European *sebʰ-, *swebʰ- (“one's own”). Cognate with West Frisian sibbe ("relative, family member"), Dutch sibbe ("sib"), German Sippe ("tribe, clan"), Icelandic sifjar ("in-laws"), Latin suus ("one's own").

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Examples

  • | Reply | Permalink in the above post, I meant "sib" - good analysis to you both.

    Obama Spokesman: I Don't Know His Stance On FISA 2009

  • "That devil you called your sib's granddaughter, General.

    Exodus From The Long Sun Wolfe, Gene 1996

  • My sib is a really good cook; what he cooks isn't fancy, but it's really, really good.

    Archive 2008-11-01 Bardiac 2008

  • My sib is a really good cook; what he cooks isn't fancy, but it's really, really good.

    Still Thankful Bardiac 2008

  • Gossip has quite degenerated from its old meaning, and even "sib," though good English in Chaucer's time, is now only to be found in provincial dialects; but in German "sipp" still means "kin."

    Anahuac : or, Mexico and the Mexicans, Ancient and Modern Edward Burnett Tylor

  • "We call one another sib, which is short for _sibyl_, because _maytera_ is reserved for the sibyl in charge of the cenoby in which we live.

    Exodus From The Long Sun Wolfe, Gene 1996

  • Or perhaps it's because this is the Plot Truck, and thus the girls don't get a look in - bar Cord, Erasmas '"sib" (sister) and the aforementioned honorary boy (she's a mechanic, and thus apparently not included in the female hivemind).

    Brit Lit Blogs 2009

  • a kind of sib, I'm thinkin '-- an' thae Merry Men, the daft callants, blawin 'and lauchin', and puir souls in the deid thraws warstlin 'the leelang nicht wi' their bit ships -- weel, it comes ower me like a glamour.

    Merry Men Robert Louis Stevenson 1872

  • It's Maria Lark, who plays precocious middle sib Bridgette, who's feeling the pain.

    Medium's Final Message 2011

  • Most of our kids will bully someone -- a younger sib, a classmate, even a friend -- this school year.

    Dr. G : There's No Such Thing as a Bully Dr. G 2011

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