If you’re unsure how to describe your relationship with the man who married your wife’s sister, you’ve come to the right place!
Below, we’ve provided a list of terms and phrases, both new and old, that you can use to define these complicated familial ties. So, read on!
Words for Your Wife’s Sister’s Husband
- Brother-in-law
- My wife’s brother-in-law
- Co-brother
- My sister-in-law’s husband
- Co-brother-in-law
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- In America, people commonly refer to their wife’s sister’s husband as their “brother-in-law.”
- A more specific phrase for the husband of your wife’s sister is “my wife’s brother-in-law.”
- The term “co-brother” is popular in India and has been accepted into a couple of popular English dictionaries.
Keep reading! In the next section, we’ll discuss our top three terms and phrases for the husband of your wife’s sister.
Thereafter, we’ll show you how to use each of our choices in some helpful example sentences.
Brother-In-Law
The most common way to refer to the husband of your wife’s sister is to simply call them your “brother-in-law.”
There is some disagreement regarding whether this is appropriate since most people understand “in-law” as meaning that a person has married directly into your family.
Moreover, since your wife’s sister is your “sister-in-law” it may seem strange to consider her husband your “brother-in-law”!
However, Merriam-Webster defines the term “brother-in-law” as “the brother of one’s spouse,” “the husband of one’s sibling,” or “the husband of one’s spouse’s sibling.”
Thus, it’s clear that this relationship name is now standard and accepted in most English dictionaries.
In short, English speakers will know precisely what you mean if you call your wife’s sister’s husband your “brother-in-law,” so this is a good, concise phrase to go with.
Let’s see the term brother-in-law in a couple of example sentences:
I bought this van from my brother-in-law before he and my wife’s sister got divorced.
We’ll be staying with my brother-in-law in Arkansas.
My Wife’s Bother-In-Law
If you’d like to be more specific when describing your relationship to your wife’s sister’s husband, you can use the clearer phrase, “my wife’s brother-in-law.”
This alternative will avoid any confusion since it clearly expresses that it is your wife’s sibling’s husband and not the husband of one of your direct siblings.
The downside of this phrase is that it doesn’t roll off the tongue quite as easily as “brother-in-law.”
Nevertheless, if you don’t know your sister-in-law’s husband particularly well, you may be more comfortable keeping some separation between you.
See how you can use this phrase in some example sentences:
I’ll be meeting my wife’s brother-in-law for the first time this Christmas.
I’ve never been sure what to call your wife’s brother-in-law since I find his given name so incredibly silly.
Co-brother
“Co-brother” is a fun word for your wife’s sister’s husband that you can use if you and the “co-brother” in question have a friendly or familial dynamic.
This expression is used frequently by English speakers in South India to refer to the husbands of their siblings-in-law.
“Co-brother” hasn’t been adopted into American English yet. However, the Cambridge Dictionary defines this term as “the husband of your wife’s sister.”
So, we guess that settles it!
The best way to popularize a phrase in your language is to use it. So, why not give this one a cheeky try next time you see your “co-brother” at a family event?
Here’s how you can use this term in a sentence:
I should introduce you to my co-brother, Miquel; he’s a great fisherman.
My co-brother and I have decided to take our kids up there for a camping trip.