family : Dictionary / Wörterbuch (BEOLINGUS, TU Chemnitz)

English Dictionary: family	by the DICT Development Group
2 results for family
From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
family n a social unit living together; "he moved his family to Virginia"; "It was a good Christian household"; "I waited until the whole house was asleep"; "the teacher asked how many people made up his home" Synonym(s): family, household, house, home, menage primary social group; parents and children; "he wanted to have a good job before starting a family" Synonym(s): family, family unit a collection of things sharing a common attribute; "there are two classes of detergents" Synonym(s): class, category, family people descended from a common ancestor; "his family has lived in Massachusetts since the Mayflower" Synonym(s): family, family line, folk, kinfolk, kinsfolk, sept, phratry a person having kinship with another or others; "he's kin"; "he's family" Synonym(s): kin, kinsperson, family (biology) a taxonomic group containing one or more genera; "sharks belong to the fish family" a loose affiliation of gangsters in charge of organized criminal activities Synonym(s): syndicate, crime syndicate, mob, family an association of people who share common beliefs or activities; "the message was addressed not just to employees but to every member of the company family"; "the church welcomed new members into its fellowship" Synonym(s): family, fellowship
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Family \Fam"ily\, n.; pl. {Families}. [L. familia, fr. famulus servant; akin to Oscan famel servant, cf. faamat he dwells, Skr. dh[be]man house, fr. dh[be]to set, make, do: cf. F. famille. Cf. {Do}, v. t., {Doom}, {Fact}, {Feat}.] 1. The collective body of persons who live in one house, and under one head or manager; a household, including parents, children, and servants, and, as the case may be, lodgers or boarders. 2. The group comprising a husband and wife and their dependent children, constituting a fundamental unit in the organization of society. The welfare of the family* underlies the welfare of society. --H. Spencer. 3. Those who descend from one common progenitor; a tribe, clan, or race; kindred; house; as, the human family; the family of Abraham; the father of a family. Go ! and pretend your family is young. --Pope. 4. Course of descent; genealogy; line of ancestors; lineage. 5. Honorable descent; noble or respectable stock; as, a man of family. 6. A group of kindred or closely related individuals; as, a family of languages; a family of States; the chlorine family. 7. (Biol.) A group of organisms, either animal or vegetable, related by certain points of resemblance in structure or development, more comprehensive than a genus, because it is usually based on fewer or less pronounced points of likeness. In zo[94]logy a family is less comprehesive than an order; in botany it is often considered the same thing as an order. {Family circle}. See under {Circle}. {Family man}. (a) A man who has a family; esp., one who has a wife and children living with him andd dependent upon him. (b) A man of domestic habits. [bd]The Jews are generally, when married, most exemplary family men.[b8] --Mayhew. {Family of} {curves [or] surfaces} (Geom.), a group of curves or surfaces derived from a single equation. {In a family way}, like one belonging to the family. [bd]Why don't we ask him and his ladies to come over in a family way, and dine with some other plain country gentlefolks?[b8] --Thackeray. {In the family way}, pregnant. [Colloq.]