families

[fam-uh-leez, fam-leez] / ˈfæm ə liz, ˈfæm liz /

NOUN

kin, offspring; classification

Synonyms

STRONGEST

clan folk group house household people tribe

STRONG

ancestors ancestry birth blood brood children class descendants descent dynasty extraction forebears genealogy generations genre in-laws inheritance issue kind kindred line lineage network parentage pedigree progenitors progeny race relations relationship relatives siblings strain subdivision system

WEAK

heirs and assigns kith and kin menage ménage

Antonyms

STRONG

parent

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

They were ultimately swayed, he said, by appeals from more than a thousand of the camp’s alumnae loyalists and families eager for their daughters to return this summer.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 18, 2026

“The victim families, sometimes paid, with a calculation that a single payment would protect their family and business in India and the United States as well.”

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 18, 2026

“Evidence suggests that when families have supportive infrastructure around them, they’re more likely to have the children they want to have.”

From Salon • Apr. 18, 2026

The couple co-founded the Ballmer Group, a foundation focused on economic mobility for children and families, in 2015.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 18, 2026

So far, all the families have been nice—well, except for the Templetons—but Melanie makes me feel like we’ve known each other for years.

From "South of Somewhere" by Kalena Miller