extended family

American  

[ik-sten-did fam-uh-lee, fam lee] / ɪkˈstɛn dɪd ˈfæm ə li, ˈfæm li /

noun

extended families plural

1. a kinship group consisting of a family nucleus and various relatives, as grandparents, usually living in one household and functioning as a larger unit.

2. (loosely) one's family conceived of as including aunts, uncles, cousins, in-laws, and sometimes close friends and colleagues.

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extended family British  

noun

1. sociol anthropol a social unit that contains the nuclear family together with blood relatives, often spanning three or more generations

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extended family Cultural  

1. A type of family in which relatives in addition to parents and children (such as grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins) live in a single household. A nuclear family forms the core of an extended family.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• extended families
  plural

Etymology

Origin of extended family

First recorded in 1940–45

Compare meaning

How does extended-family compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• nuclear family vs. extended family

Example Sentences

Clinical Professor of Psychology at Weill Cornell Medicine, says the decline of extended family involvement has helped fuel what the U.S.

From Science Daily • Jun. 13, 2026

They’re also at times footing the bill for their extended family.

From Barron's • May 27, 2026

So Ivanoff, Kristil's parents and extended family began working to change the law and save other lives.

From BBC • May 22, 2026

Much of her extended family was murdered by the Germans, but “the investment in Holocaust education has been a huge mistake,” she says.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 22, 2026

But a mystic strain ran through Mother’s extended family.

From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock

Related Words

• nuclear family