The word of the week: A matter of relativity

September 26, 2017 at 4:08PM

Definition: Your kids' in-laws (­Merriam-Webster Online).

Sample usage: "The kinlaws are outside with their luggage and want to know if they can stay a week because technically we're family. Is that even them? It's been six years since the wedding."

Popularity: "Kin" isn't a word you hear up in this part of the country, unless people are also saying "kith" and the subject is: "words we don't use because 'relatives' is a perfectly good term."

JAMES LILEKS

Interested in other words we've dissected? See more at startribune.com/word.

about the writer

about the writer

More from No Section

See More
FILE -- A rent deposit slot at an apartment complex in Tucker, Ga., on July 21, 2020. As an eviction crisis has seemed increasingly likely this summer, everyone in the housing market has made the same plea to Washington: Send money — lots of it — that would keep renters in their homes and landlords afloat. (Melissa Golden/The New York Times) ORG XMIT: XNYT58
Melissa Golden/The New York Times

It’s too soon to tell how much the immigration crackdown is to blame.