meaning of "aunt"?

Answer 1

"Aunt" comes from 13th-century Middle English as derived from the Old French "ante" that in turn comes from the Latin "Amita", originally meaning the speaker's father's sister. The term has obviously been extended to include his or her mother's sister, the wife ot either a paternal or maternal uncle, or any great or grand aunt, as well as any older women who is a close friend to either or both of the speaker's parents.

Answer 2

It's one of those relations like "sister-in-law," or "brother-in-law," that can have several different meanings.

1. Your mother's sister

2. Your father's sister.

3. Wife of your mother's brother.

4. Wife of your father's brother.

It shouldn't be ignored that it's also a term used to address a close female friend of your parents. For example, I have an "Aunt Anita" who's not related to anyone in my family.

There are also great-aunts, which would be all of the same relationships named above, except with your grandparents in place of your parents.

Answer 3

In western euro kinship reckoning, aunt may be a sister of either of your parents, or wife of a brother of either parent.

And if you were raised US southern, along with saying yes ma'am and no sir, you may have been taught to address female close family friends as "aunt" as a title or honorific, and may even have called your best friend's aunt "aunt".

Answer 4

The sister of your mum or dad, the wife of your uncle.