How to Say “Cousin” in Italian – Cugino / Cugina

The word for cousin in Italian is cugino. Unlike the English word however, you can specify the gender of the person by changing the last letter of the word. A male cousin is a cugino and a female cousin is a cugina.

/kuˈdʒino – kuˈdʒina/
The Italian word for "cousin"

There are also masculine and feminine versions of the plural cousins. Many male cousins, or a mix of male and female cousins, are known as cugini and many female cousins are called cugine.

Ho quattro cugine e solo un cugino.

I have four female cousins and only one male cousin.


Of course cousins exist to varying degrees as you can see below:

  • cugino di primo grado = first cousin
  • cugino di secondo grado = second cousin / first cousin once removed
  • cugino di terzo grado = third cousin / first cousin twice removed
  • lontano cugino = distant cousin

Roberto è un lontano cugino ma vado più d’accordo con lui che con il resto della famiglia!

Roberto is a distant cousin but I get along with him better than the rest of my family!


Warm toned portrait of two cute little kids hugging and laughing happily holding teddy bear toy
Siamo cugini! = We’re cousins!

When referring to children, people often use the diminutive forms cuginetto (masculine) or cuginetta (feminine). They literally translate as little cousin.


Ethics statement: Below you will find affiliate links. If you buy something after clicking the link, we will receive a small commission. To know more about our ethics, you can visit our full disclosure page. Thank you!

Lingopie (affiliate link) is the Netflix of language learning application that uses real TV shows and movies to help you learn a new language. You can choose a show to watch based on your fluency level, and use the interactive subtitles to get instant translations to help you learn quickly.

Are you interested in improving your Italian in a fun and stress-free manner? Then we highly recommend Serena Capilli's short stories in Italian (affiliate link), designed for beginners, advanced beginners, and lower intermediate learners (A1-B1 CEFR). These stories have been optimised for English speakers in search of a fun, laid-back learning experience! Read our full review here.