Family & Relationships
Parents, siblings, partners, friends, and the wider web of kin.
181 words
Download MarkdownSome words in this topic are A2–C2 — part of Pro. A1 words are always free.
Go ProA1 (26)
father
A1
/ˈfɑ.ðəɹ/
A male parent.
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dad
A1
/dæd/
A father; a male parent (informal).
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mother
A1
/ˈmʌðɚ/
A female parent; a woman who has or raises a child.
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son
A1
/sʌn/
A person's male child.
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mom
A1
/mɑm/
Mother (informal).
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family
A1
/ˈfæ.m(ə )li/
A group of people who are related, especially parents and their children.
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brother
A1
/ˈbɹʌðɚ/
A boy or man who has the same parents as you
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wife
A1
/waɪf/
The woman a man is married to.
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daughter
A1
/ˈdɔ.tɚ/
A person's female child.
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husband
A1
/ˈhʌzbənd/
The man that a woman is married to.
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sister
A1
/ˈsɪs.tɚ/
a girl or woman who has the same parents as you
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uncle
A1
/ˈʌŋ.kl̩/
The brother of your mother or father, or your aunt's husband.
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daddy
A1
/ˈdæd.i/
A father; used especially by or to young children (informal).
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mum
A1
/mʌm/
A child's word for mother.
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boyfriend
A1
/ˈbɔɪˌfɹɛnd/
A male partner in a romantic relationship.
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partner
A1
/ˈpɑɹt.nɚ/
A person you do an activity or share a business with.
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aunt
A1
/ɑːnt/
The sister of your mother or father, or your uncle's wife.
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cousin
A1
/ˈkʌz(ə)n/
The child of your aunt or uncle.
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grandfather
A1
/ˈɡɹæn(d)ˌfɑðɚ/
The father of your father or mother.
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grandmother
A1
/ˈɡɹæn(d)ˌmʌðɚ/
The mother of your father or mother.
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parent
A1
/ˈpɛ(ə)ɹənt/
A person's mother or father.
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grandparent
A1
/ˈɡɹæn(d)pɛəɹənt/
A parent of your father or mother.
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grow apart
A1
to become less close in a personal relationship over time
Phrasal verb
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help through
A1
to support someone in getting through a difficult period or situation
Prepositional verb
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A2 (9) Pro
married
A2
/ˈmæɹ.id/
Having a husband or a wife.
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birth
A2
/bɜɹθ/
The time when a baby is born or comes out of its mother.
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affair
A2
/əˈfɛɹ/
A secret romantic or sexual relationship, usually involving someone who is married.
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friendship
A2
/ˈfɹɛn(d)ʃɪp/
A relationship between friends.
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grandson
A2
/ˈɡɹæn(d)sʌn/
The son of your son or daughter.
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granddaughter
A2
/ˈgrænˌdɔtɝ/
The daughter of your son or daughter.
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surname
A2
/ˈsɝˌneɪm/
The family name shared by members of a family, used after the first name.
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ancestor
A2
/ˈæn.sɛs.tɚ/
A person in your family who lived a long time ago, before your grandparents.
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smooth over
A2
to make an awkward disagreement seem less serious without fully addressing it
Phrasal verb
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B1 (13) Pro
marriage
B1
/ˈmæɹ.ɪd͡ʒ/
The legal or formal union of two people as partners for life.
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relationship
B1
/ɹəˈleɪʃ(ə)nˌʃɪp/
The way in which two or more people, groups, or things are connected or behave toward each other.
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bull
B1
/ˈbʊl/
A large adult male of the cattle family
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nephew
B1
/ˈnɛf.ju/
The son of your brother or sister.
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pope
B1
/poʊp/
An honorary title of the Roman Catholic bishop of Rome as father and head of his church, a sovereign of the Vatican city state.
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niece
B1
/nis/
The daughter of your brother or sister.
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relative
B1
/ˈɹɛl.ə.tɪv/
A member of your family.
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household
B1
/ˈhaʊshoʊld/
All the people who live together in one house.
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dynasty
B1
/ˈdaɪnəsti/
A series of rulers who all belong to the same family.
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great-grandfather
B1
/ˌɡreɪtˈɡrændˌfɑðər/
the grandfather of one of your parents; the father of a grandparent
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firefly
B1
/ˈfaɪ.ɚˌflaɪ/
a beetle of the family Lampyridae whose abdomen produces light, especially at twilight
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cheat on
B1
to have a sexual relationship with someone other than one's partner
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lean on
B1
to rely on someone for help or emotional support
Prepositional verb
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B2 (16) Pro
divorce
B2
/dɪˈvoɹs/
The legal ending of a marriage.
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pa
B2
/pɑː/
Father; dad.
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brother-in-law
B2
/ˈbɹʌðɚ ɪn ˌlɔ/
The brother of your husband or wife, or the husband of your sister
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sister-in-law
B2
/ˈsɪs.tɚ.ɪn.lɔ/
the sister of your husband or wife, or your brother's wife
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son-in-law
B2
/ˈsʌnɪnˌlɔː/
The husband of your daughter.
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adoption
B2
/əˈdɑp.ʃən/
The act of legally taking a child into your family to raise as your own.
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mother-in-law
B2
/ˈmʌ.ðəɹ.ɪnˌlɑː/
The mother of your husband or wife.
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father-in-law
B2
/ˈfɑːðəɹɪnˌlɔː/
The father of your husband or wife.
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daughter-in-law
B2
/ˈdɔːtə(ɹ)ɪnˌlɔː/
The wife of your son.
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ark
B2
/ɑrk/
the great vessel that Noah built to preserve his family and animals from the biblical flood
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ox
B2
/ˈɑks/
An adult male of the cattle family, often used to pull heavy loads.
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royalty
B2
/ˈrɔɪəlti/
Members of a royal family considered together.
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breakup
B2
/ˈbɹeɪk.ʌp/
The end of a romantic relationship or friendship.
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nightingale
B2
/ˈnaɪtɪŋɡeɪl/
A Eurasian and African songbird, Luscinia megarhynchos, family Muscicapidae, famed for its beautiful singing at night; a common nightingale.
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sibling
B2
/ˈsɪb.lɪŋ/
A brother or sister.
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subsoil
B2
/ˈsʌbsɔɪl/
the layer of soil beneath the topsoil and above the underlying rock or parent material
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C1 (12) Pro
clan
C1
/klæn/
A large group of families descended from a common ancestor.
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offspring
C1
/ˈɔfspɹɪŋ/
A person's child or children.
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spouse
C1
/spaʊ̯s/
A husband or wife.
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vendetta
C1
/vɛnˈdɛt.ə/
a prolonged and often violent feud in which a family, clan, or group seeks revenge for previous injuries or killings
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starling
C1
/ˈstɑɹlɪŋ/
a gregarious songbird, often dark and glossy, belonging to the family Sturnidae
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pansy
C1
/ˈpæn.zi/
a small garden plant of the violet family with rounded, often multicolored petals
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patriarch
C1
/ˈpeɪtɹiˌɑɹk/
the male head of a family, tribe, or social group
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mandolin
C1
/ˈmæn.dəˌlɪn/
a small plucked string instrument of the lute family, usually with four paired courses tuned like a violin
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porpoise
C1
/ˈpɔːrpəs/
a small toothed whale of the family Phocoenidae, typically with a blunt snout
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menfolk
C1
/ˈmɛnˌfoʊk/
the male members of a family, community, or other group, often in traditional or old-fashioned usage
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drift apart
C1
to gradually become less close and lose regular contact
Phrasal verb
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lust after
C1
to feel strong sexual desire for someone
Prepositional verb
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C2 (63) Pro
squirrel
C2
/ˈskwɝ(ə)l/
Any of the rodents of the family Sciuridae.
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willow
C2
/ˈwɪloʊ/
Any of various deciduous trees or shrubs in the genus Salix, in the willow family Salicaceae, found primarily on moist soils in cooler zones in the northern hemisphere.
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boar
C2
/boɹ/
A wild boar (Sus scrofa), the wild ancestor of the domesticated pig.
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cactus
C2
/ˈkæktəs/
Any member of the family Cactaceae, a family of flowering New World succulent plants suited to a hot, semi-desert climate.
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python
C2
/ˈpaɪθɑn/
a large nonvenomous constricting snake of the family Pythonidae, native chiefly to Africa, Asia, and Australia
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partridge
C2
/ˈpɑɹtɹɪd͡ʒ/
Any bird of a number of genera in the family Phasianidae, notably in the genera Perdix and Alectoris.
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paternity
C2
/pəˈtɜːnɪti/
the state of being a father
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pap
C2
/pæp/
US dialect: father; pa
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pheasant
C2
/ˈfɛzənt/
A bird of family Phasianidae, often hunted for food.
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psychoanalysis
C2
/ˌsaɪkoʊəˈnæləsɪs/
a family of theories and therapeutic methods that interpret unconscious mental processes, conflicts, and motives
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woodpecker
C2
/ˈwʊdˌpɛkɚ/
Any bird of species-rich family Picidae, with a strong pointed beak suitable for pecking holes in wood.
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sturgeon
C2
/ˈstɝː.dʒən/
any of a family of usually large, long-bodied freshwater or migratory fishes with rows of bony plates, valued especially for roe used as caviar
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kinsman
C2
/ˈkɪnzmən/
a male relative, especially one belonging to the same extended family; now often literary or historical
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thrush
C2
/θɹʌʃ/
Any of numerous species of songbirds of the cosmopolitan family Turdidae, such as the song thrush, mistle thrush, bluebird, and American robin.
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boer
C2
/bɔːr/
historical: a Dutch-speaking settler or farmer in southern Africa, especially an ancestor of the Afrikaner population
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thistle
C2
/θɪsl̩/
any of numerous plants of the family Compositae and especially of the genera Carduus and Cirsium and Onopordum having prickly-edged leaves
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genealogy
C2
/ˌd͡ʒiniˈɑlədʒi/
the study or investigation of ancestry and family history
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cockatoo
C2
/ˌkɑkəˈtuː/
a parrot of the family Cacatuidae, typically having a prominent movable crest
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sorrel
C2
/ˈsɔɹəl/
any of several plants with tart, acidic leaves, especially common sorrel of the dock family
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warbler
C2
/ˈwɔːrblɚ/
any of numerous small, active songbirds, especially members of the Old World family Sylviidae or the New World family Parulidae
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wombat
C2
/ˈwɑːmˌbæt/
a stocky, burrowing Australian marsupial of the family Vombatidae, with short legs and strong digging claws
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kinfolk
C2
/ˈkɪnfoʊk/
old-fashioned or regional: one's relatives or family considered collectively
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sandpiper
C2
/ˈsændpaɪpər/
any of numerous small or medium-sized wading birds of the family Scolopacidae, typically with a slender bill and a piping call
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sprat
C2
/spræt/
a small silvery marine fish of the herring family, especially the European sprat, eaten as food or used as bait
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C2+ (42) Pro
cuckoo
C2+
/ˈkuku/
Any of various birds, of the family Cuculidae within the order Cuculiformes, famous for laying its eggs in the nests of other species; but especially a common cuckoo (Cuculus canorus), that has a characteristic two-note call.
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bee-eater
C2+
/ˈbiːˌiːtɚ/
any brightly colored insect-eating bird of the family Meropidae, known for catching bees and wasps in flight
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motmot
C2+
/ˈmɑːtˌmɑːt/
a tropical American bird of the family Momotidae, usually green or blue-green and often having two long racket-tipped central tail feathers
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ex
C2+
/ɛks/
(informal) a former spouse or partner
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da
C2+
/dɑ/
father (dialectal or informal)
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cognomen
C2+
/kɑɡˈnoʊmən/
a surname, nickname, or family name, especially in ancient Rome
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dada
C2+
/ˈdɑdɑ/
an early-20th-century anti-art movement embracing absurdity; informally, father
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gull
C2+
/ɡʌl/
a seabird of the family Laridae; also, to deceive or cheat someone
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kin
C2+
/kɪn/
one's family and relations collectively
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chive
C2+
/tʃaɪv/
a slender herb of the onion family used to flavor food
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adder
C2+
/ˈædɚ/
a small venomous snake of the viper family
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ancestry
C2+
/ˈænsɛstri/
one's family or ethnic descent; lineage
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chickadee
C2+
/ˈtʃɪkəˌdiː/
a small North American songbird of the tit family with a dark cap
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consort
C2+
/ˈkɑnsɔrt/
a spouse, especially of a reigning monarch; to associate with
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fatherling
C2+
/ˈfɑðərlɪŋ/
a little or dear father (an archaic affectionate term)
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helpmeet
C2+
/ˈhɛlpˌmit/
a helpful companion or partner, especially a spouse
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kindred
C2+
/ˈkɪndrəd/
one's family and relations; related or similar in nature
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lineage
C2+
/ˈlɪniɪdʒ/
direct descent from an ancestor; ancestry
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maternity
C2+
/məˈtɜrnɪti/
the state of being a mother; motherhood
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nanny
C2+
/ˈnæni/
a person employed to care for a family's children; a female goat
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progenitor
C2+
/proʊˈdʒɛnɪtɚ/
an ancestor or originator of a line or movement
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provider
C2+
/prəˈvaɪdɚ/
one who supplies something or supports a family
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bandfish
C2+
/ˈbændˌfɪʃ/
a small elongated red marine fish of the family Cepolidae
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forebear
C2+
/ˈfɔrbɛr/
an ancestor
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