Odd One Out — Uncle, Nephew, and Brother are gendered male terms; Cousin is a gender-neutral kinship term. Identify the odd relationship term and explain.
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AUncle
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BNephew
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CBrother
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DCousin
Answer
Correct Answer: Cousin
Explanation
Introduction / Context:Kinship terminology can be grouped by whether the word encodes gender. Three options explicitly denote male relations; one is gender-neutral.
Given Data / Assumptions:
- Uncle: male sibling of a parent or their male spouse.
- Nephew: a brother’s/ sister’s son (male).
- Brother: male sibling.
- Cousin: gender-neutral term for a child of one’s aunt/uncle.
Concept / Approach:Identify which label does not encode male gender in its form/meaning.
Step-by-Step Solution:Uncle → male-specific.Nephew → male-specific.Brother → male-specific.Cousin → gender-neutral → outlier by gender coding.
Verification / Alternative check:Generation test is weaker (uncle is elder generation; nephew is younger; brother/cousin same generation) and does not yield a single outlier. Gender-coding does.
Why Other Options Are Wrong:
- Uncle, Nephew, Brother: all explicitly male relations.
Common Pitfalls:Assuming “cousin brother” colloquialism implies gender; standard English “cousin” is gender-neutral.
Final Answer:Cousin