Meaning & use
non-relative
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountable
A person who is not a member of your family by birth or marriage.
Grammar: Countable: you can say 'a non-relative' or 'several non-relatives'.
Patterns
- a non-relative of someone
- care by a non-relative
She left her entire estate to a non-relative, surprising her family.
The child was adopted by a non-relative after spending years in foster care.
adjectivebefore a noun
Not connected by family ties; not a relative.
Grammar: Used before a noun: 'a non-relative caregiver'.
Patterns
- non-relative caregiver
- non-relative adoption
The law allows a non-relative guardian to make decisions for the child.
They hired a non-relative nanny instead of asking family.
Word forms
| plural | non-relatives |
|---|
Common combinations
- a non-relative of the victim
- The police interviewed a non-relative of the victim who was present at the time.
- care by a non-relative
- The elderly woman received care by a non-relative for several years.
- non-relative adoption
- Non-relative adoption is when a child is adopted by someone not in their family.
- non-relative guardian
- A non-relative guardian was appointed by the court.
Synonyms and how they differ
- stranger
- A stranger is someone you do not know at all, while a non-relative is simply not family; you might know them well.
- outsider
- An outsider is not part of a particular group, which may or may not be family; non-relative specifically refers to family relation.
Opposites
Word family
- relative noun
- A member of your family.
- relatively adverb
- In comparison with something else.
Commonly confused: non-relative or nonrelative?
non-relative vs nonrelative
This is the same word without a hyphen; both are correct, but the hyphenated form is more common in British English.
Practice
In which sentence does 'non-relative' mean 'not a family member'?
Choose one answer.
Option 1 is correct because 'non-relative' here refers to a person not related by family. Option 0 uses 'non-relative' in a grammatical sense (not related to a noun). Option 2 is about grammar (relative pronoun). Option 3 is about humidity, not family.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “non-relative”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.