Meaning & use
step-sibling
Last updated
Meaning
nouncountable
A person who becomes your brother or sister because one of your parents marries their parent, without any shared blood.
Grammar: Countable noun: use 'a step-sibling' for one, 'step-siblings' for more than one. Often plural because families may include several.
Patterns
- someone's step-sibling
- a step-sibling of someone
After my mother remarried, I gained two step-siblings.
My step-sibling and I go to the same school.
She introduced her step-sibling to her friends at the party.
Word forms
| plural | step-siblings |
|---|
Common combinations
- step-sibling relationship
- They have a close step-sibling relationship.
- become step-siblings
- The children became step-siblings after the wedding.
- my step-sibling
- My step-sibling is coming to visit next week.
- half-sibling
- A half-sibling shares one biological parent, unlike a step-sibling.
Synonyms and how they differ
- stepbrother
- Use stepbrother only for a male step-sibling; it is more specific.
- stepsister
- Use stepsister only for a female step-sibling; it is more specific.
Word family
- step- prefix
- Added to family words to show a relationship created by a parent's remarriage, as in stepfather or stepchild.
Commonly confused: step-sibling or half-sibling?
step-sibling vs half-sibling
A half-sibling shares one biological parent with you, while a step-sibling shares no blood and is related only through marriage.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'step-sibling' correctly?
Choose one answer.
A step-sibling is the child of your parent's new spouse, so option 2 is correct. Option 0 describes a stepfather, not a step-sibling; option 1 is about sharing a birthday, which is not the definition; option 3 is a biological brother, not a step-sibling.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “step-sibling”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.