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kin

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kith and kin

friends and relatives; people known to someone. I was delighted to find all my kith and kin waiting for me at the airport to welcome me home. I sent cards to my kith and kin, telling them of my arrival.

See also: and, kin

one's next of kin

one's closest living relative or relatives. The police notified the dead man's next of kin. My next of kin lives 800 miles away.

See also: kin, next, of

kith and kin

  (old-fashioned)

friends and relatives

Usage notes: Kith is an old-fashioned word which means friends.

They wanted to keep alive the memory of their kith and kin who had died in the war.

See also: and, kin

kith and kin

Friends and family, as in Everyone was invited, kith and kin as well as distant acquaintances. This expression dates from the 1300s and originally meant "countrymen" ( kith meant "one's native land") and "family members." It gradually took on the present looser sense.

See also: and, kin