aunt

English

Etymology

From Middle English aunte, a borrowing from Anglo-Norman aunte, from Old French ante, from Latin amita ‎(“father's sister”). Displaced native Middle English modrie ‎(“aunt”) (from Old English mōdriġe ‎(“maternal aunt”); compare Old English faþu, faþe ‎(“paternal aunt”)).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation, Australia, New England) enPR: änt, IPA^(key): /ɑ(ː)nt/

  Audio (US)

  (file)

  Rhymes: -ɑːnt

  Homophone: aren't (in some non-rhotic accents)

• (Scotland, Northern England, Canada, General American) enPR: ănt, IPA^(key): /ænt/ (in the US, this is the most common pronunciation in all regions except New England and Virginia)

  Rhymes: -ænt

  Homophone: ant

  Audio (US)

  (file)

• (Canada, Maritimes) IPA^(key): /ɒnt/
• (New England) enPR: ônt, IPA^(key): /ɔnt/
• (Southern American English) IPA^(key): /eɪnt/

  Homophone: ain't

Noun

aunt ‎(plural aunts)

1. The sister or sister-in-law of one’s parent.
   • 2007, Nancy Eshelman, A Piece of My Mind: Columns from the Patriot-News, page 35:

     I mentioned another aunt, my late mother's sister, who's about the same age.

2. An affectionate term for a woman of an older generation than oneself, especially a friend of one's parents, by means of fictive kin.

Antonyms

• (with regard to gender) uncle
• (with regard to ancestry) niece, nephew

Hyponyms

• (sister of someone's father) paternal aunt
• (sister of someone's mother) maternal aunt

Derived terms

• Auntie
• auntie, aunty
• aunting
• agony aunt
• big auntie
• grandaunt

• great-aunt
• little auntie
• mine aunt
• my giddy aunt
• naunt

Translations

Several languages distinguish between blood aunts (one’s parent’s sister) and in-law aunts (one’s parent’s sister-in-law), some distinguish between paternal and maternal aunts, and some distinguish between one’s parent’s older siblings and younger siblings.

a parent’s sister or sister-in-law

• Albanian: teze (sq), emtë (sq), hallë (sq)
• Amharic: ኣከስት ‎(ʾakäst)
• Arabic: (paternal) عَمَّة (ar) f ‎(ʿamma), (maternal) خَالَة (ar) f ‎(ḵāla)
• Armenian: հորաքույր (hy) ‎(horakʿuyr) (paternal), մորաքույր (hy) ‎(morakʿuyr) (maternal), քեռակին (hy) ‎(kʿeṙakin) (in law)
• Asturian: tía (ast) f
• Azeri: xala (az), bibi (az)
• Bakhtiari: (paternal) کچی ‎(keči)
• Basque: izeba (eu), izeko (eu)
• Belarusian: цётка f ‎(cjótka), цёця f ‎(cjócja)
• Breton: moereb (br) f
• Bulgarian: ле́ля (bg) f ‎(lélja)
• Catalan: tia (ca) f
• Chinese:

  Simplified Mandarin:

  (father's sister): 姑 (zh) ‎(gū), 姑妈 (zh) ‎(gūmā), 姑姑 (zh) ‎(gūgu), 姑母 (zh) ‎(gūmǔ)

  (father’s elder brother’s wife): 伯母 (zh) ‎(bómǔ)

  (father’s younger brother’s wife): 叔母 (zh) ‎(shúmǔ), 婶母 (zh) ‎(shěnmǔ), 婶婶 (zh) ‎(shěnshen)

  (maternal): 姨 (zh) ‎(yí), 姨妈 (zh) ‎(yímā), 阿姨 (zh) ‎(āyí), 姨母 (zh) ‎(yímǔ);

  (in-law): 舅母 (zh) ‎(jiùmǔ), 舅妈 (zh) ‎(jiùmā), 妗母 ‎(jìnmǔ), 妗 (zh) ‎(jìn)

  Traditional Mandarin:

  (father's sister): 姑 (zh) ‎(gū), 姑媽 (zh) ‎(gūmā), 姑姑 (zh) ‎(gūgu), 姑母 (zh) ‎(gūmǔ)

  (father’s elder brother’s wife): 伯母 (zh) ‎(bómǔ)

  (father’s younger brother’s wife): 叔母 (zh) ‎(shúmǔ), 嬸母 (zh) ‎(shěnmǔ), 嬸嬸 (zh) ‎(shěnshen)

  (maternal): 姨 (zh) ‎(yí), 姨媽 (zh) ‎(yímā), 阿姨 (zh) ‎(āyí), 姨母 (zh) ‎(yímǔ); (in-law): 舅母 (zh) ‎(jiùmǔ), 舅媽 (zh) ‎(jiùmā), 妗母 ‎(jìnmǔ), 妗 (zh) ‎(jìn)

• Chinook Jargon: kwalh
• Czech: teta (cs) f
• Danish: faster (da) (paternal), moster (da) (maternal), tante (da) (in-law)
• Dutch: tante (nl) f
• Esperanto: onklino
• Estonian: tädi (et)
• Ewe: (paternal) tasi, te, (mother's elder sister) dagã, nɔgã, (mother's younger sister) daɖia, nɔɖi
• Faroese: fastir f (paternal), mostir f (maternal)
• Finnish: täti (fi) (paternal or maternal, sometimes in-law)
• French: tante (fr) f, tatie (fr) f (informal)
• Friulian: agne f
• Galician: tía f
• Georgian: დეიდა (ka) ‎(deida), მამიდა (ka) ‎(mamida)
• German: Tante (de) f
• Greek: θεία (el) f ‎(theía)
• Greenlandic: aja (maternal), atsa (paternal)
• Hawaiian: makuahine, ʻanakē
• Hebrew: דּוֹדָה f ‎(dóda)
• Hungarian: nagynéni (hu)
• Icelandic: föðursystir (is) f (paternal), móðursystir (is) f (maternal)
• Ido: onklino (io)
• Indonesian: bibi (id), tante (id)

  Sundanese: ébé

• Irish: aintín f
• Istriot: gnagna f
• Italian: zia (it) f
• Japanese: おば (ja) ‎(oba), (younger than one’s parent): 叔母 (ja) ‎(おば, oba), (older than one’s parent): 伯母 (ja) ‎(おば, oba)
• Kazakh: апа (kk) ‎(apa), апай ‎(apay)
• Kis: omoigwa
• Korean: 고모 (ko) ‎(gomo) (paternal), 이모 (ko) ‎(imo) (maternal)
• Krisa: wini (paternal), moni baʼ (mother's elder sister), moni pung (mother's younger sister)
• Kurdish:

  Sorani: پوور ‎(pûr)

• Latgalian: cjoceite
• Latin: amita (la) (paternal), matertera (la) (maternal)
• Latvian: tante, (paternal) tēva māsa, (maternal) mātes māsa
• Lithuanian: teta f
• Lojban: famti
• Luhya: senge
• Luxembourgish: Tatta f
• Macedonian: тетка f ‎(tetka)
• Malay:

  Rumi: emak saudara, mak cik, tante

  Jawi: امق ساودارا, مق چيق, تنتى

• Malayalam: അമ്മായി (ml) ‎(ammāyi), (colloquial) മേമ ‎(mēma), മാമി (ml) ‎(māmi), (father's elder sister) വല്യമ്മ ‎(valyamma), (father's younger sister) ചെറിയമ്മ (ml) ‎(ceṟiyamma)
• Marathi: (mother's sister) माउशी f ‎(māuśī), (mother's sister-in-law) मामी f ‎(māmī), (father's sister) आत्या f ‎(ātyā), (father's sister-in-law) काकी ‎(kākī)
• Meriam: apu
• Middle English: aunte
• Miyako: (younger than one’s parent) ブバ ‎(buba), (older or younger than one's parent) ブバマ ‎(bubama)
• Nama: antis
• Ngarrindjeri: barno
• Norman: tànte f (Guernsey), tante f (Jersey)
• Northern Sami: (mother's elder sister) goaski, (mother's younger sister) muoŧŧá, (father's sister) siessá, (parent's or their sibling's cousin's wife) ipmi
• Norwegian: tante (no) m, f, faster m, f (paternal), moster m, f (maternal)
• Occitan: tanta (oc) f
• Old English: módrige f (mother's sister), faðu f (father's sister)
• Old French: ante f, aunte f
• Persian: (paternal) عمه (fa) ‎('amme), (maternal) خاله (fa) ‎(xâle)
• Polish: ciotka (pl) f, ciocia (pl) f, wujenka (pl) f (wife of mother's brother), stryjenka (pl) f (wife of father's brother)
• Portuguese: tia (pt) f
• Romanian: mătușă (ro) f
• Russian: тётя (ru) f ‎(tjótja), тётка (ru) f ‎(tjótka) (colloquial), тётушка (ru) f ‎(tjótuška)
• Rusyn: тю́̈тка f ‎(tjú̈tka)
• Saterland Frisian: Möie f
• Scottish Gaelic: piuthar-athar f (paternal), piuthar-màthar f (maternal), antaidh f
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: тетка f, (maternal in-law) ујна f, (paternal in-law) стрина f

  Roman: tetka (sh) f, (maternal in-law) ujna (sh) f, (Bosnia) daidžinca f, (paternal in-law) strina (sh) f, (Bosnia) amidžinca f

• Seri: aac
• Sicilian: zia (scn) f
• Skolt Sami: sieˊss (paternal)
• Slovak: teta (sk) f
• Slovene: teta (sl) f
• Spanish: tía (es) f
• Sundanese: ébé
• Swahili: shangazi (sw)
• Swedish: faster (sv) c (paternal), moster (sv) c (maternal), tant (sv) c (in-law)
• Telugu: (paternal) అత్త (te) ‎(atta), (maternal) పిన్ని (te) ‎(pinni), పెదమ్మ (te) ‎(pedamma), (maternal, in-law) అత్త (te) ‎(atta)
• Turkish: hala (tr), bibi (tr), eme (tr) (paternal), teyze (tr) (maternal), yenge (tr) (in-law)
• Turkmen: daýza
• Ukrainian: ті́тка (uk) f ‎(títka), тьо́тя f ‎(tʹótja)
• Venetian: amia (vec) f, àmeđa f, àmeda f, àmia f
• Vietnamese: cô (vi) (paternal), dì (vi) (maternal)
• Volapük: jiter (vo), zian (vo)
• Welsh: modryb (cy) f
• West Frisian: muoike (fy) c
• Yiddish: טאַנטע f ‎(tante)
• Zazaki: ām, xale

great-aunt or grandaunt — see great-aunt or grandaunt

grandmother — see auntie or grandmother

affectionate term for an older woman, by means of fictive kin

• Armenian: հորաքույր (hy) ‎(horakʿuyr), մորաքույր (hy) ‎(morakʿuyr)
• Catalan: tia (ca) f
• Czech: teta (cs) f
• Dutch: tante (nl) f
• Estonian: tädi (et)
• Finnish: täti (fi)
• Georgian: დეიდა (ka) ‎(deida)
• German: Tante (de) f
• Hungarian: néni (hu)
• Italian: zia (it) f
• Kurdish:

  Sorani: خاتۆ ‎(xato), خان (ku) ‎(xan)

• Latvian: tante

• Malay: makcik
• Marathi: काकू f ‎(kākū), माउशी f ‎(māuśī)
• Norwegian: tante (no) m, f
• Portuguese: tia (pt) f
• Russian: (colloquial) тётя (ru) f ‎(tjótja)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: тета f

  Roman: teta (sh) f

• Slovene: teta (sl) f
• Swedish: tant (sv) c
• Turkish: teyze (tr)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.

Translations to be checked

• Breton: (1,2,3,4) ^{(please verify)} moereb (br) f, (children’s language) ^{(please verify)} tintin f
• Guaraní: ^{(please verify)} sy'y, (2) ^{(please verify)} sy kypy'y
• Indonesian: ^{(please verify)} bibi (id), ^{(please verify)} tante (id), ^{(please verify)} tanta
• Interlingua: ^{(please verify)} amita
• Lithuanian: (1) ^{(please verify)} teta f
• Polish: ciocia (pl) f

• Romanian: ^{(please verify)} mătușă (ro) f
• Slovak: (1,2) ^{(please verify)} teta, ^{(please verify)} striná, (3) ^{(please verify)} strinka, (4) ^{(please verify)} učiná f
• Tamil: (periamma), ^{(please verify)} அத்தை (ta) ‎(attai) (paternal), (in-law) Periy'yamma (elder), ^{(please verify)} Chi ‎(Chi) 'thi (younger), ^{(please verify)} Periy ‎(Periy) 'yamma (elder), ^{(please verify)} Chi ‎(Chi) 'thi (younger), ^{(please verify)} Maa ‎(Maa) 'mi (in-law)
• Telugu: ^{(please verify)} పిన్ని (te) ‎(pinni), ^{(please verify)} పెదమ్మ (te) ‎(pedamma), ^{(please verify)} అత్త (te) ‎(atta)
• Tibetan: ^{(please verify)} ཡ་ནི་ ‎(ya ni), ^{(please verify)} སུ་མོ་ ‎(su mo)
• Tupinambá: (1) ^{(please verify)} aîxé, (2) ^{(please verify)} sy'yra
• Upper Sorbian: ^{(please verify)} ćeta (hsb)
• Vietnamese: ^{(please verify)} cô (vi), ^{(please verify)} thím (vi)

See also

• materteral

Anagrams

• tuna