/ˈfæməli/ noun
a group of people who are related to each other
ADJECTIVES/NOUNS + family:
a large/big/small family
He came from a large family and had four sisters.
a wealthy/rich/well-off family
She was from a wealthy family and did not need to work.
a poor/low-income/disadvantaged family
Children from poor families are less likely to go to university.
a young family (=with young children)
It’s not easy bringing up a young family on your own.
the whole family/the entire family/all the family
We have invited the whole family to our house for Christmas.
This is a game which all the family can enjoy.
the Smith/Jones/Brown etc family
The Smith family are living in temporary accommodation.
the royal family (=the king or queen and their family)
The royal family have large estates in Scotland.
sb’s immediate family (=closest relations)
What if one of your immediate family were disabled?
sb’s extended family (=including not only parents and children, but also grandparents, aunts etc)
She gets a lot of help from her extended family.
a one-parent/single-parent family
Many of the kids are from one-parent families.
a two-parent family
The traditional two-parent family was seen as the best way of bringing up children.
a nuclear family (=a family consisting of a mother, a father, and their children)
Not everyone lives in a typical nuclear family.
a close/close-knit family (=spending a lot of time together and supporting each other)
Laura’s family are very close.
a dysfunctional family formal (=a family with bad relationships between the members)
Children from dysfunctional families need special help.
VERBS
come from a family
He comes from a family of doctors.
start a family (=start to have children)
She wanted to get married and start a family.
bring up/raise a family (=look after children until they are grown up)
You can work as well as bringing up a family.
support your family (=provide the money and things they need)
He works hard to support his family.
have family somewhere
I moved to Australia because I had family there.
sth runs in the family (=used to say that many members have an illness, feature, ability etc)
Depression runs in my family.
family + NOUNS
a family member/a member of the family
He lost two members of his family in the disaster.
sb’s family background
He comes from a stable family background.
a family history
Is there a family history of heart disease?
family life
Some people believe that television is destroying family life.
family ties (=connections between people who are related to each other)
The family ties began to weaken, as younger members of the family moved away.
a family unit formal (=a family that lives together)
They thought it was important to preserve the family unit.
a family business (=one run by members of a family)
My parents expected me to join the family business.
sb’s family home (=where someone’s family live and where they lived as a child)
Her family home is in a village outside Derry.
a family car (=one designed for families with children)
It’s a practical family car that is also fun to drive.
a family holiday BrE a family vacation AmE
Most of our family holidays were spent in the south of France.
a family resemblance (=when members of the same family look like each other)
There’s a strong family resemblance between all the sisters.
PREPOSITIONS
a family of four/five etc
This house isn’t big enough for a family of seven.
in sb’s family
Everyone in my family is smarter than me.
Don’t say My family is five. Say There are five people in my family.