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family

family

∞ 1.0
People who live together in one home, usually parents and their children
  • noun
  • /ˈfæmɪli/
: familia
  • My family and I spend every Sunday together enjoying home-cooked meals.
  • family members
  • family income
  • family planning

Charge them the same family rate they charged me.

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Examples

  • The war's end proved especially protracted for families whose men remained in federal prison camps.

    Academic text (2008)
  • We all have to spend more time together as a family.

  • It's a great game for, you know, families or just yourself.

  • And at the end of the day, we're always family no matter what.

  • Just about every family lost a child.

  • I never had a family till I had football.

  • I want to offer my congratulations and welcome you to the family.

  • I grew up in a single parent family, just me and my mum.

  • We are a family, and like any family, we have our good days and not-so-good days.

    Academic text (2011)
  • But the last time we've been back as a family was last Thanksgiving.

Synonyms

household
vsfamily
505 1.0

The people who live together in one home, often a family

is mainly used for groups of people who live together as a unit
family unit
vsfamily
23 1.8

A group of parents and their children who live together

refers to a group of people living together usually parents and children
nuclear family
vsfamily
14 2.1

A family with just parents and their children

is broader covering any people living together as a unit
menage
vsfamily
8 9.3

A household of people who live together and share everyday life

means the same general group of people who live together as a unit
conjugal family
vsfamily
1 6.9

A family made up of a married couple and their children, sometimes including one partner's parents

is more general meaning people living together usually parents and children

Idioms

Something many members of the same family have

16 3.4

A group of people who are close and friendly like a loving home

Only members of the same family own or run it, for example a family business

4 7.1

To not tell people outside the family about important things

3 3.3

To say that your family is the most important part of your life

1 8.4

A woman who is pregnant

Give up valuable family items to solve money problems

Families stay close and strong by spending time together

Families who sleep close together become closer

Compounds

104 2.4

A company owned and run by people from the same family

94 1.8

Close relatives of a king or queen who rules a country

61 1.0

A family with many people, often including several children

57 2.1

A man who cares a lot for his family and spends time with them

A group of related people including parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins

53 2.7

A picture that shows how people in a family are related over generations

A gathering of family members to celebrate and reconnect

45 1.0

The name a person shares with other family members, not the given name

38 1.0

A meal that family members eat together, often in the evening

To choose how many children to have and when, usually using birth control

family court
  • Formal
31 3.0

A court that deals with family problems like divorce and child custody

31 1.0

A room in a house where people relax and spend time together

family history
  • Specialized
27 2.7

Information about illnesses your relatives have had to help a doctor know your health risks

23 1.8

A group of parents and their children who live together

An object of value passed down in a family from parents to children

20 3.5

A family that cares for a child who is not their own for a time when the parents cannot

19 2.0

A doctor who gives regular health care to all family members over many years

18 2.7

Time away from work to care for family members after a birth, adoption, or when they are ill

Stories about a family's past that people tell to younger people

A family with just parents and their children

A connection between people who are related by blood, marriage, or adoption

9 3.9

A long, bitter fight between relatives that lasts for years

A time when family members meet to celebrate or spend time together

7 3.2

A group of people who are related by birth over many generations

family practice
  • Specialized
7 3.1

A clinic where doctors give basic health care to whole families

family therapy
  • Specialized
6 3.9

A meeting with a therapist for family members to improve communication and solve problems

family jewels
  • Offensive
6 9.9

The male body parts between the legs that make sperm

6 1.1

A film suitable for children and adults to watch together

family medicine
  • Specialized
5 3.1

Medical care for people of all ages and their families

5 3.7

Information about close blood relatives who had cancer

4 1.7

A movie that children and adults can enjoy together

3 4.9

A large Bible kept at home with pages to record family births, marriages, and deaths

A family whose members belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

1 4.8

A way to avoid pregnancy by not having sex during a woman's fertile days, without using medicine or devices

Family where the father does not live with the children

family silver
  • Informal
1 6.9

Valuable things a family keeps and gives to later generations

type family
  • Specialized
1 6.5

A set of related fonts like regular, bold, and italic that match each other

legume family
  • Specialized
1 3.6

A group of plants like peas and beans that grow in pods

plant family
  • Specialized
1 4.2

A group of related plants with similar flowers and leaves

To manage a job and family life at the same time

banana family
  • Specialized
1 3.5

A group of tropical tree-like plants that includes bananas

mint family
  • Specialized
1 3.3

A group of scented herbs like mint, thyme, and rosemary

lily family
  • Specialized
1 5.6

A group of flowering plants like tulips that often grow from bulbs

brass family
  • Specialized
1 3.9

A group of instruments like trumpet or trombone that make sound when the player's lips buzz on a mouthpiece

form family
  • Specialized
1 9.9

A temporary group scientists use for plants or animals when it is not clear how they are related

A group of instruments that make sound when someone blows into them, like a flute or clarinet

family Balanidae
  • Specialized
1 9.9

Small sea animals with hard shells that stick to rocks and ships

1 9.9

A group of monkeys from Africa and Asia, like baboons and macaques

pea family
  • Specialized
1 4.1

A group of plants that grow bean pods like peas and beans

bird family
  • Specialized
1 4.7

A group of related birds that share similar body shape and habits

A group of string instruments played with a bow, like the violin, viola, cello, and double bass

mustard family
  • Specialized
1 4.8

A group of plants like cabbage, broccoli, and turnip that have flowers with four petals

1 3.8

Plants like roses, apple trees, and cherry trees that have five petals

mulberry family
  • Specialized
1 7.2

A family of trees and shrubs with milky sap like mulberry and fig

grass family
  • Specialized
1 3.8

A family of plants including grasses like wheat and bamboo

yam family
  • Specialized
1 6.7

A group of flowering plants that includes yams and other plants with starchy underground tubers

carrot family
  • Specialized
1 4.1

A group of plants like parsley and dill with small umbrella-shaped flower clusters

morning-glory family
  • Specialized
1 6.8

A group of climbing flowering plants with trumpet-shaped flowers like sweet potato and bindweed

iris family
  • Specialized
1 6.0

A group of flowering plants like irises and crocuses that grow from bulbs or underground stems

beech family
  • Specialized
1 7.0

A group of trees and small bushes like beeches, chestnuts, and oaks

poppy family
  • Specialized
1 6.0

A group of flowering plants like poppies with milky sap and seed pods

potato family
  • Specialized
1 4.2

A group of flowering plants that includes tomatoes, potatoes, peppers, and eggplants

witch-hazel family
  • Specialized
1 8.6

A group of trees and shrubs that have flowers, including witch-hazel and sweetgum

family Umbelliferae
  • Specialized
1 8.3

A large group of plants with small flowers in umbrella-like bunches, like carrot and parsley

bacteria family
  • Specialized
1 5.3

A group of related bacteria types that share similar genes

palm family
  • Specialized
1 5.8

A group of mainly tropical plants like coconut and date trees with large leaves

A day when a family goes out together for fun

A family made up of a married couple and their children, sometimes including one partner's parents

family Testudinidae
  • Specialized
1 8.8

A group of land tortoises with domed shells and short, heavy legs

A large family of flowering plants with bright, often unusual flowers found worldwide

agave family
  • Specialized
1 8.5

A group of plants like agave that grow well in dry, hot places

mallow family
  • Specialized
1 7.7

A family of flowering plants like cotton and okra

family Arctiidae
  • Specialized
1 9.9

A group of moths like tiger moths with bright colors and patterns

How Big

clan
217 2.9
family
∞ 1.0
couple
∞ 1.3

Surface Forms

family singular
families plural

Etymology

Family comes from the old Latin word familia, which meant the whole 'household', the people and servants who lived in one house. That's why family still means the people who live together as a unit.