Meaning & use
stepsibling
Last updated
Meaning
nouncountable
The child of your stepmother or stepfather from an earlier relationship, not related to you by blood.
Grammar: Countable: one stepsibling, two stepsiblings. Often used in the plural to refer to all such siblings.
Patterns
- a stepsibling of someone
- someone's stepsiblings
- have a stepsibling
When my mother remarried, I gained two stepsiblings.
My stepsibling and I get along well even though we are not related by blood.
She invited all her stepsiblings to the wedding.
Word forms
| plural | stepsiblings |
|---|
Common combinations
- a new stepsibling
- He was nervous about meeting his new stepsibling.
- become stepsiblings
- They became stepsiblings when their parents married.
- a stepsibling relationship
- A stepsibling relationship can be as close as a biological one.
Synonyms and how they differ
- stepbrother
- Stepbrother is specifically a male stepsibling, while stepsibling can be male or female.
- stepsister
- Stepsister is specifically a female stepsibling, while stepsibling is gender-neutral.
- half sibling
- Half sibling shares one biological parent, while a stepsibling shares no biological parent.
Word family
Commonly confused: stepsibling or half sibling?
stepsibling vs half sibling
A half sibling shares one biological parent with you, while a stepsibling shares no biological parent.
Practice
My father remarried, so his new wife's daughter is my ______.
Choose one answer.
The daughter of your stepparent is your stepsister. 'Half sister' would mean you share one biological parent; 'stepsibling' is gender-neutral but less specific; 'stepdaughter' is the daughter of your spouse.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “stepsibling”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.