Compound wordMother-in-law
The mother of your husband or wife.
Priya's mother-in-law taught her to play chess on Sunday afternoons.
Remember: Mother + in + law. Hyphenated: three words joined by two hyphens. Plural adds -s to the main word: mothers-in-law.
Short lessonCompounds, blends & clippingsEnglish makes new words by joining words, fusing parts of words, or cutting words short. This is called word formation.