Talking About Immediate and Extended Family

Immediate family members include people like your mother, father, sister, brother, son, and daughter. When you want to describe your parents together, you can say parents. For extended family, you might talk about your aunt, uncle, or cousin. These terms help you explain your family tree and introduce family members when meeting new people.

Example uses:

• My brother is younger than me.
• She has two daughters and one son.
• Our family gets together every Sunday.
• I visited my aunt and uncle last weekend.
• My cousin is coming to stay with us during the holidays.

Talking About In-Laws

When you get married, you gain new family members called in-laws. For example, your spouse’s brother is your brother-in-law, and your spouse’s mother is your mother-in-law. Likewise, your spouse’s sister is your sister-in-law, and your spouse’s father is your father-in-law. The children who marry into your family are called son-in-law and daughter-in-law.

Example uses:

• I had dinner with my mother-in-law.
• My brother-in-law is very friendly.
• Their daughter-in-law is a chef.

Family Structure and Relationships

Families can take different forms. A traditional family usually includes two parents and their children. Some families are single-parent, where a child is raised by one parent. When a parent marries again after a divorce or being widowed, it can create step relationships (for example, stepsister, stepbrother). Some children are adopted or live with a foster family. People may divorce if a marriage ends, and sometimes someone may remarry.

Example uses:

• She grew up in a single-parent family.
• He was adopted when he was a baby.
• They decided to remarry after the divorce.
• My stepbrother is the son of my father’s new wife.

Romantic Relationships and Milestones

Romantic relationships use terms like boyfriend, girlfriend, or partner. If you are in a relationship, you might talk about dating someone. When two people agree to get married, this is called an engagement, and the people involved are fiancé and fiancée. The event where two people get married is the wedding, and after marriage, the woman is called a wife.

Example uses:

• They have been dating for two years.
• They announced their engagement last week.
• He introduced his fiancée to his family.
• The wedding will be in June.
• My wife likes to travel.

Describing Family Activities and Events

Families do things together, such as celebrate birthdays, have a family reunion, or host a get together at holidays like Thanksgiving. When talking about someone’s birth, use to be born. To talk about helping children grow up, use to raise or to take care of.

Example uses:

• We always celebrate Christmas together.
• There is a big family reunion every summer.
• They take care of their grandparents.
• Their son was born in May.

Describing Relationships and Their Characteristics

When talking about how people connect, you can say you share a bond with someone, or that you spend time together. You might be close to your family, or you might have grown apart from someone. If you do not speak with a family member, you can say you are estranged. You can introduce someone, meet someone for the first time, or reunite after a long time. If you no longer live together as a couple, use to be separated or to divorce.

Example uses:

• They are very close and spend a lot of time together.
• The sisters were estranged for many years.
• Iintroduced my boyfriend to my family.
• They grew apart after college.
• The family was happy to reunite at the wedding.