1closely related group 关系密切的群体 [countableC]SSF a group of people who are related to each other, especially a mother, a father, and their children 〔尤指由父母和孩子组成的〕家庭
Do you know the family next door?
你认识隔壁那家人吗?
The Webb family still has its farm over there.
韦伯家依然保留着那里的农场。
This house isn’t big enough for a family of seven.
这房子住不下七口之家。
2all your relations 所有和你有亲属关系的人 [countableC, uncountableU]SSFFAMILY all the people you are related to, including those who are now dead 家族
I’m moving to Detroit because I have some family there.
我要搬到底特律,因为我有家人住在那儿。
in somebody’s family
That painting has been in our family (=been owned by our family) for 200 years.
那幅油画属于我们家族已有200年了。
Asthma runs in the family (=is common in the family).
这个家族有哮喘病史。
nGRAMMAR: Singular or plural verb?
In senses 1 and 2, family is usually followed by a singular verb:
The family now lives in London.
那家人现居伦敦。
My family comes from Scotland originally.
我祖籍是苏格兰。
In British English, you can also use a plural verb:
The family now live in London.
那家人现居伦敦。
My family come from Scotland originally.
我祖籍是苏格兰。
3children 孩子,子女 [countableC]SSCFAMILY children 孩子
Couples with young families wouldn’t want to live here.
子女年幼的夫妻不会愿意住在这里。
They’re getting married next year, and hope to start a family (=have children) straight away.
他们准备明年结婚,并希望马上要孩子。
bring up/raise a family
the problems of bringing up a family on a very low income
in the family way• Do I appear to be in the family way?• That young scut has put a fancy piece in the family way.
COLLOCATIONS – Meanings 1 & 2
adjectives
the whole family 全家人
We invited the whole family round.
我们把一家人都请了过来。
all the family 全家人
This is a game which all the family can enjoy.
这个游戏全家人都能玩。
somebody's immediate family (=closest relations) 某人的直系亲属
What if one of your immediate family were disabled?
要是你的某位直系亲属残疾了怎么办?
somebody's extended family (=including not only parents and children, but also grandparents, aunts etc) 某人的大家庭
She gets a lot of help from her extended family.
她从大家庭里获得了许多帮助。
a large/small family 大/小家庭
She came from a large family of seven children.
她来自一个有七个孩子的大家庭。
a one-parent/single-parent family 单亲家庭
nOne in seven families is a one-parent family.
the nuclear family (=a family consisting of a mother, a father, and their children) 核心家庭,小家庭
nNot everyone lives in a typical nuclear family.
close/close-knit family (=a family that spends a lot of time together and gives each other support) 关系亲密的一家人
nLaura's family are very close.
nthe Royal family (=the king or queen and their family)
The Royal Family have large estates in Scotland.
nthe Smith/Jones/Brown etc family
The Smith family are living in temporary accommodation.
family + NOUN
a family member/a member of the family 家庭成员
The event was attended by many of his family members, including his children and grandchildren.
这次活动他家里许多人都参加了,包括他的子女和孙辈。
somebody's family background 某人的家庭出身
He comes from a stable family background.
他家世雄厚。
a family history 家族史
Is there a family history of heart disease?
有心脏病家族史吗?
family life 家庭生活
Some people believe that television is destroying family life.
有人认为电视正在破坏家庭生活。
a family unit 家庭单位
nthe breakup of the traditional family unit
somebody's family home (=where someone's family live and where they lived as a child) 某人的老家
nHer family home is in a village outside Derry.
a family business (=one run by members of a family) 家族企业
nMy parents expected me to join the family business.
a family car (=one designed for families with children) 家庭用车
nIt's a practical family car that is also fun to drive.
a family holidayBritish EnglishBrE, a family vacationAmerican EnglishAmE: 家庭度假
nMost of our family holidays were spent in the south of France.
a family resemblance (=when members of the same family look like each other) 亲缘相似性
nThere's a strong family resemblance between all the sisters.
COMMON ERRORSDon't say 'my family is five', 'my family is five members/people', or 'my family is of five members/people'. Say there are five people in my family.
不要说'my family is five', 'my family is five members/people', 或'my family is of five members/people'. 而要说 there are five people in my family.
Examples from the Corpus
family• He comes from a family of eight children.• The following computations are based on both general assumptions about all families and specific assumptions about families at specific incomelevels.• tigers and other members of the catfamily• My extendedfamily usually gets together at holidays.• Until recently, all she and her family could do was wait and see.• Pearl is the last survivingmember of her family.• Her family came to America from Scotland in about 1750.• Only her immediatefamily knew she had heartdisease.• Secondly, in familyabuse, the history of the relationships may be of great significance in current abuse.• Various members of the Kennedy family were at the funeral.• Spanish and Italian are part of the Romance language family.• I grew up in a large family in the South.• Having an intactnuclearfamily does not guarantee that a child will turn out well.• Our family has lived around here for hundreds of years.• Single-parent families are much more common these days.• The cost of sendingkids to college - even for a small family - is extremely high.• Do you know the family next door?• And last but not least, the baby of the family.• A lot of the families living in this area are very poor.• Predictably they will tell the adviser that they can not rehouse all those families and perhaps the tenant can contact the police.• It is their village now, just as much as it was for the old village families.• The resort isn't really the place for people with young families.
runs in ... family• It's more of a case of maintaining form while others struggle, and it often runs in the family.• I told you, tiredness runs in the family.• Jimmy Souness, who was a school cleaner, had a history of heart disease which runs in the family.
bring up/raise a family• Dads that are bringing up familiessingle handedly shouldn't be forgotten either.• That meantmarrying, settling down, bringing up a family, thought Lily.• Bilijana, 26, was looking forward to bringing up a family in their comfortable Sarajevo home.• The sad fact is that on an averageclassroom teacher's salary it is impossible to bring up a family in London.• How the quite respectable people who lived under these conditionsmanaged to bring up families, I shall never know.• My grandfather had died early, so she was used to bringing up a family on her own.• We have found it to be the ideal way of combiningpursuit of a career in medicine with bringing up a family.
the cat/parrot/squirrel etc family• Most people opt for the furry friendliness of the cat family.• These markings are found on many of the cat family and are used for signalling their intentions and mood to others.
Originfamily
(1400-1500)familia“people living in a house”, from famulus“servant”