English

Noun

sistren

1. (archaic) plural of sister
   • 1570 March 13. Will of David Tyrry Fitz Edmonde:

     My wyfe to have my dwelling house during her widowhood, that is to say, the hall, the parlor, and the small seller: to my sistren Catheryn and Ellen Tyrry their grinding in my myll during their lives, paying noo toll nor multhe money.

   • 2003 April 16 (airdate). Angel (TV series), episode "The Magic Bullet"

     LORNE: Blessings and moon pies, brethren and sistren!

   • 2010 April 26, “The Calm Before the Storms”, in Neo-Neocom, retrieved 2012-03-14:

     I see many of the brethren and the sistren are in the same place I was the other night, when Tatyana commented on my gloom.

   • 2011 February 17, Dave Lerner, “I Am Incubator”, in Huffington Post, retrieved 2012-03-14:

     Among my brethren and sistren in incubation I count the folks working at places like idealab, betaworks, alleycorp, as well as certain current and former university venture lab specialists I hold in high esteem.

Usage notes

• This form died out around the sixteenth century. Since then, it has been most often used jocularly together with brethren, as in “brethren and sistren”.

See also

• brethren, brother
• nun
• friar, frater, father

Etymology 2

Noun

sistren ‎(plural sistrens)

1. (Rastafarian) A close female friend, family member, or comrade.

Coordinate terms

• bredrin

Anagrams

• inserts, sestrin, sinters