family tree

American  

noun

family trees plural

1. a genealogical chart showing the ancestry, descent, and relationship of all members of a family or other genealogical group.

---

family tree British  

noun

1. Also called: genealogical tree.  a chart showing the genealogical relationships and lines of descent of a family

---

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• family trees
  plural

Etymology

Origin of family tree

First recorded in 1800–10

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

family tree

“Any family tree is going to be filled with colors,” Marshall added.

From Salon ● Jul. 27, 2026

Strangers don’t need to know your whole family tree, which is the first way asking for free advice differs from paying a professional.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 22, 2026

Perhaps Lodge’s career path didn’t stray too far from the family tree after all.

From Barron's ● Jun. 25, 2026

The researchers then constructed a genetic "family tree" using all 102 bacterial strains included in the study.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 23, 2026

When class started, Señor Ascencio explained that we each would have to create a family tree and write a short essay to go with it for our first big assignment due on Monday.

From "The First Rule of Punk" by Celia C. Pérez