See Also: niece(medicine)
niece(dictionary)
niece(dictionary)
NIECE, domestic relations: The daughter of a person' s brother or sister(law)
NIECE, domestic relations: The daughter of a person's brother or sister(law)

niece (iou)



niece noun. [ni:s] ME.
[Old & mod. French niece from popular Latin neptia for Latin neptis corresp. to Sanskrit napti, Lithuanian nepte, and Germanic base of Old English nift, Middle Dutch nichte (whence German Nichte), Dutch nicht, Old Norse nipt.]
Orig., a granddaughter; a remote female descendant. Later, a daughter of a person's brother or sister; a daughter of a brother- or sister-in-law. ME.
b. euphem. An illegitimate daughter of an ecclesiastic. Cf. NEPHEW 1b. arch. M19.
gen. A female relative. ME-E16.
A male relative, esp. a nephew. rare. LME-E17.
Phrases: Welsh niece: see WELSH adjective.