family

family [fam′ə lē, fam′lē]

n.

pl. families [ME familie < L familia, household establishment, akin to famulus, servant < ? IE * dhe-mo-, house (< base * dhē-: see DO¹) > Sans dhāman, household]

1. Obs. all the people living in the same house; household: see also EXTENDED FAMILY

2.

a) a social unit consisting of parents and the children they rear: see also NUCLEAR FAMILY

b) the children of the same parents

c) one's husband (or wife) and children

3. a group of people related by ancestry or marriage; relatives

4. all those claiming descent from a common ancestor; tribe or clan; lineage

5. a criminal syndicate under a single leader [a Mafia family]

6. a COMMUNE² (sense 5) living in one household, esp. under one head

7. a group of things having a common source or similar features; specif.,

a) Biol. a major category in the classification of animals, plants, etc., ranking above a genus and below an order: it can include one genus or many similar genera: the Latinized family names are capitalized but not italicized (Ex.: Felidae, cats)

b) Chem. a group of chemical elements having similar properties, forming one of the vertical columns of the periodic table

c) Ecol. a community composed of organisms of the same species

d) Linguis. a parent language and all the languages and dialects descended from it

e) Math. a set of curves, functions, or other entities with some shared property

adj.

1. of or for a family [a family picnic, the family car]

2. characteristic of or suitable for a family, esp. one regarded as traditional or typical; wholesome, middle-class, etc. [family entertainment, family values]

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in a family way

Informal pregnant; with child