July 12, 2016

family

(fam lee)

A family is a group of people who share a common bond. These people are usually related by blood or marriage, but the word "family" is also used to describe members of an organization.

• Many families in the United States consist of two parents and two or more children.
• How many people are there in your family?
• My friend Jebediah comes from a big family.
• Xavier says he’s ready to start a family.
• Rhonda doesn’t feel like she ready to start a family yet, so she’s going to wait to get married.
• Doctors would allow only immediate family members to visit Edwardo when he was in the hospital. (immediate family = mother, father, siblings, grandparents)
• A reunion was held recently that drew extended members of our family from across the country.
• Our local fire fighters work so closely together that they feel as if they are one big family.

The word "family" is often used as part of a compound noun:

• There’s a family reunion being held in the park today. Well over 200 people are expected to attend.
• We had a family gathering over the Fourth of July weekend.
• The people affected by the gun fight considered it a private, family matter.
• Charles considers himself a family man. (family man = a man who is totally dedicated to his family)
• Rick and Melba are taking a family vacation in August.

Charles considers himself a family man.

Note: There are a few different ways to describe a family:

• A nuclear family consists of two parents and a child or children.
• A traditional family is the same as a nuclear family.
• An extended family includes uncles, aunts, cousins, and others related by blood.
• A non-traditional family can include any assortment of people related or unrelated.
• A mixed family includes people who come into the family through marriage. The prefix "step" indicates this. My mother married my step-father years after my mother got a divorce.

Click here to go to the Word of the Day page.