familynoun
uk/ˈfæm.əl.i/us/ˈfæm.əl.i/family noun (SOCIAL GROUP)
A1 [ C or U + sing/pl verb ] a group of people who are related to each other, such as a mother, a father, and their children:
A new family has/have moved in next door.
I come from a large family - I have three brothers and two sisters.
He doesn't have any family.
He's American but his family (= relatives in the past) come/comes from Ireland.
This movie is good family entertainment (= something that can be enjoyed by parents and children together).
How do you like family life (= being married, having children, etc.)?
B1 [ C usually singular, U + sing/pl verb ] the children of a family:
Women shouldn't have to choose between career and family (= having children).
Paul and Ana are hoping to start a family (= have children) soon.
My dad died when we were small so my mum raised the family on her own.
[ C, + sing/pl verb ] a pair of adult animals and their babies:
We've got a family of squirrels living in our garden.
More examples
- Peter's success at college delighted his family.
- He read her letter aloud to the rest of the family.
- She values her job above her family.
- There were scenes of great joy as the hostages were re-united with their families.
- Several families take in foreign students.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Family: relations in general
- aunt
- auntie
- baby daddy
- be sb's own flesh and blood idiom
- birth mother
- filial
- first cousin
- fraternal
- fraternal twin
- grandchild
- loved one
- maiden aunt
- maternal
- matriarch
- mom-and-pop
- son
- uncle
- working mother/father/parent
- your nearest and dearest idiom
- your own flesh and blood idiom
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You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:
Animal groupings
family noun (BIOLOGICAL GROUP)
[ C ] specialized biology a large group of related types of animal or plant:
The lion is a member of the cat family.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Plants & animals - general words
- animal kingdom
- autotroph
- biped
- bloodsucker
- carnivore
- flora and fauna
- greenery
- herbivore
- heterotroph
- humpbacked
- omnivore
- omnivorous
- parasite
- parasitic
- predatory
- songster
- vegetation
- vertebrate
- warm-blooded
- wildlife
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Idiom(s)
be in the family way