mother-in-law

[ muhth-er-in-law ]

noun

, plural moth·ers-in-law.

1. the mother of one's spouse.

mother-in-law

noun

1. the mother of one's wife or husband

Word History and Origins

Origin of mother-in-law¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English moder in lawe; mother ¹( def ), in ( def ), law ¹( def ); from Middle English in-lawe “in law,” i.e., “a person within the regulation and protection of the law,” based on the prohibition by Roman civil law and, later, Christian canon law, of marriages within four degrees of consanguinity, i.e., up to and including first cousins

Example Sentences

Rosalind Seysses, my mother-in-law, has been a longtime model, mentor, and support.

From The Daily Beast

Her mother-in-law was injured and had to seek medical attention.

From The Daily Beast

He laundered money into Swiss banks and used his mother-in-law and her sister to traffic cash into the country.

From The Daily Beast

His former mother-in-law has a strong opinion as to what should be done with this particular vampire.

From The Daily Beast

My mother-in-law used to watch the show anyway, so she got a giggle out of the idea.

From The Daily Beast

On the whole, Bud did not greatly disapprove of that; he was too actively resentful of his own mother-in-law.

From Project Gutenberg

The young assistant's bashfulness commended him to his mother-in-law's good graces.

From Project Gutenberg

After dinner, the discerning eye of the co-mother-in-law divines the work of darkness.

From Project Gutenberg

Your wife, now the mother-in-law of Adolphe, subjects herself to the pressure of tight corsets.

From Project Gutenberg

Miss Matilda Griffin was a good deal uglier, and about as amiable as her mother-in-law.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• aunt
• cousin
• father
• folk
• mother
• niece
• sibling
• uncle