incest
noun
Simple meaning
Sexual relations between close relatives.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
insestSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈɪnsɛst
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
Sexual relations between close relatives, especially immediate family members and first cousins, usually considered taboo; in many jurisdictions, close relatives are not allowed to marry, and incest is a crime.
“Genetic problems caused by incest are thought to have plagued many royal families in the Middle Ages.”
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- A1 · Beginner (estimated)
- Frequency
- Very Common
- Typical Use
- Everyday English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
This meaning: Sexual relations between close relatives, especially immediate family members and first cousins, usually considered taboo; in many jurisdictions, close relatives are not allowed to marry, and incest is a crime.
Used this way, incest is a common word with a faintly unfavourable edge. It turns up most in family or home contexts.
“Genetic problems caused by incest are thought to have plagued many royal families in the Middle Ages.”
- Emotional tone
- Slightly negative
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Moderate
- How common
- Common
- Connotation
- Critical or judgemental
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Where it naturally appears
- Family/home
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Related Words
Connected to the same idea, not synonyms.
- intercoursenoun
- adulterynoun
- pornographynoun
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Words can change meaning depending on context.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API (CC BY-SA 3.0). Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.