nuncle

C2+ Topic:Register & Style

US /ˈnʌŋkəl/ UK /ˈnʌŋkəl/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

noun
uncle (archaic, especially as used by a fool to a master)

The Fool teased his master, calling him nuncle throughout the storm.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · uncle (archaic, especially... uncle

Word family

Related forms uncle aunt

Simplified etymology

Nuncle arose in the late 16th century when the phrase an uncle was reinterpreted as a nuncle. It remained a parallel form of uncle, as illustrated by the Fool’s use of it in Shakespeare’s King Lear.

Etymology

A variant of uncle arising from misdivision of 'mine uncle' as 'my nuncle' (metanalysis); uncle itself is from Old French oncle, from Latin avunculus ('mother's brother').

oncle Old French avunculus Latin

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Topics

External links

# nuncle

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈnʌŋkəl/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈnʌŋkəl/

## Meanings
1. uncle (archaic, especially as used by a fool to a master)

## Examples
- The Fool teased his master, calling him nuncle throughout the storm.

## Synonyms
- uncle

## Related Forms
- uncle
- aunt

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: oncle
- Root: avunculus

## Etymology
A variant of uncle arising from misdivision of 'mine uncle' as 'my nuncle' (metanalysis); uncle itself is from Old French oncle, from Latin avunculus ('mother's brother').

## AI Etymology
Nuncle is a variant of uncle arising from misdivision of 'mine uncle' as 'my nuncle' (metanalysis); uncle itself is from Old French oncle, from Latin avunculus ('mother's brother'). Important recorded forms include oncle (Old French) and avunculus (Latin). The modern sense follows that older lexical line closely. In current use it covers uncle (archaic, especially as used by a fool to a master). The wider family includes related words such as uncle and aunt.

## Topics
- Register & Style
- General Vocabulary

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