Family vocabulary

Family

Parents

Your mother and father are your parents who care for you while you are growing.

• Father: a person’s male parent. We usually call our father Dad or Daddy.
• Mother: a person’s female parent. We usually call our mother Mum or Mummy.

Grandparents

• Grandfather: a father of a person’s parent. We usually call our grandfather grandad (US granddad) or grandpa.
• Grandmother: a mother of a person’s parent. We usually call our grandmother gran, grandma or granny.

Siblings

Your brothers and sisters are your siblings with same parents.

• Brother: a male person with the same parents as another person
• Sister: a female person with the same parents as another person

Our uncle and aunt are the siblings of our parents.

• Uncle: a brother of a person’s parent; a husband of a person’s aunt
• Aunt: a sister of a person’s parent; a wife of a person’s uncle

Children

Your son and daughter are your children.

• Son: a male child
• Daughter: a female child
• Cousin (also first cousin): a child of a person’s aunt or uncle
• Nephew: a son of a person’s sibling
• Niece: a daughter of a person’s sibling

Grandchildren

The child of your son or daughter is your grandchild.

• Grandson: a son of a person’s child
• Granddaughter: a daughter of a person’s child

Spouse

The partner in marriage is our spouse. Our wife or husband is our spouse.

• Husband: a male partner
• Wife: a female partner

Parents of the spouse

• Father-in-law: a father of a person’s spouse
• Mother-in-law: a mother of a person’s spouse
• Brother-in-law: a brother of a person’s spouse
• Sister-in-law: a sister of a person’s spouse

Exes

Your ex-wife or ex-husband is your former partner in marriage.

Half-siblings

• Half-brother: a male person who has either the same mother or the same father (but not both) as another person
• Half-sister: a female person who has either the same mother or the same father (but not both) as another person

Stepparents

• Stepmother: new wife of a person’s father in a second marriage
• Stepfather: a new husband of a person’s mother in a second marriage

Stepchild

Your stepbrother or stepsister is the child of your stepparent but not your biological parent.

Collocations with family members

lone, single, widowed father a father of two/three etc.

lone, single, unmarried, widowed mother a mother of two/three etc.

big, elder, older, little, younger, full, half, twin brother/sister

maternal, paternal uncle/aunt

future, ex-, former, house husband/wife