tío

From Old Galician-Portuguese tio, from Late Latin thīum, from Ancient Greek θεῖος (theîos). Compare Portuguese tio.

• IPA^(key): /ˈtio/ [ˈt̪i.ʊ]
• Rhymes: -io
• Hyphenation: tí‧o

tío m (plural tíos, feminine tía, feminine plural tías)

1. uncle

   Synonym: titío

   O meu tío é o irmán da miña nai ou do meu pai.

   My uncle is my mother’s or father’s brother.

2. (colloquial) unknown male person, dude, guy

   E ese tío gritoume.

   And that guy yelled at me.

3. mister (title conferred on an adult male)

   Synonym: señor

• (antonym(s) of “with regard to gender”): tía
• (antonym(s) of “with regard to ancestry”): sobriño, sobriña

• “tío”, in Dicionario da Real Academia Galega (in Galician), A Coruña: Royal Galician Academy, 2012–2025
• Ernesto Xosé González Seoane, María Álvarez de la Granja, Ana Isabel Boullón Agrelo (2006–2022) “tío”, in Dicionario de Dicionarios do galego medieval (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega

Inherited from Old Spanish tio, from Late Latin thius, from Ancient Greek θεῖος (theîos). Compare Italian zio, Galician tío and Portuguese tio, Sardinian tiu.

• IPA^(key): /ˈtio/ [ˈt̪i.o]

• Audio (Colombia):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -io
• Syllabification: tí‧o

tío m (plural tíos, feminine tía, feminine plural tías)

1. uncle (the brother, brother-in-law, or male cousin or cousin-in-law of either parent)

   Coordinate terms: sobrino, sobrina

   Mi tío es el hermano o primo de mi madre o de mi padre.

   My uncle is my mother’s or father’s brother or male cousin.

2. (colloquial, Spain) unknown or any male person, dude, guy

   Synonyms: tipo, (Chile) gallo; see also Thesaurus:tío

   Y ese tío me gritó. ― And that guy yelled at me.

3. (colloquial, Spain) friend, mate, pal, man, bro

   Synonym: (Mexico) cuate

   Tío, ¿me puedes ayudar por un momento?

   Can you help me for a moment, mate?

4. mister (title conferred on an adult male)

   Synonym: señor

• → Catalan: tio

• “tío”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 10 December 2024