double aunt

double aunt (plural double aunts)

1. A woman who is one's aunt in two ways, e.g. being a sister of one parent and the wife of a sibling of the other.
   • 1923, Mrs. Alida M. de Wet Badenhorst, Tant' Alie of Transvaal: Her Diary 1880-1902, page 235:

     The youngest son of Frikkie's sister had been betrothed to the girl who had measles in my house ; she was my sister's child, and thus I was double aunt.

   • 1971, Irwin Anderson Watson, The pioneers were our ancestors - Volumes 1-2, page 100:

     Aunt Mary was Uncle Burney 's double aunt. Now figure that out. She was Uncle Burney 's father's sister and also his mother's sister.

   • 2006, Sandra Ailey Petree, Recollections of Past Days, →ISBN:

     It's difficult to determine which aunt Patience may be referring to here, but Patience had a double aunt and uncle: Patience's mother's sister Elizabeth married Patience's father's brother Daniel.

   • 2011, Carol Ericson, B.J. Daniels, The McClintock Proposal/High-Caliber Christmas, →ISBN:

     "Of course she's your aunt Callie. She's married to your uncle Rod." Kelsey threw her head back and laughed. “Then she's a double aunt.” Dana coughed. "Do you want some pie?" "What's a double aunt?" Callie tilted her head, a half smile curving her lips. "You're married to my Uncle Rod, Dad's brother, and you're also Mom's sister."

   • 2011, Timothy Larsen, A People of One Book: The Bible and the Victorians, →ISBN, page 115:

     A dominant influence on NIghtingale was her Aunt Mai (Mary Shore Smith, eventually a double aunt as she was her father's sister who married her mother's brother).

2. (rare) A woman who is the aunt of exactly two people, especially when those two people are twins.
   • 1894, Neil Christison, Wedded to a Genius: A Novel - Volume 1, page 201:

     I've just paid one to my double aunt.' Phelan ventured to ask what relationship that might be. ' She's my father's aunt first, and then she's mine next, and so she is really two aunts,' he explained. '

   • 1944, The Tucson Liberator - Volume 2:

     Proving that when good things come they come in pairs, Moss Kelly (9) was the twice proud father or twin boys last Thursday . . . this makes Louise Splane (3) a double aunt or something.

   • 2013, Rochelle Alers, Sweet Persuasions, →ISBN:

     "If everything goes well, then you'll become a double aunt." "When is the baby. . . I guess I should say when are the babies due?" Selena asked.

• double uncle
• double cousin