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.

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family tree British  

noun

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

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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

Then again, as the family tree that prefaces this memoir makes clear, it made no difference that the Moritz family had lived in German territory since the 18th century.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 27, 2026

One day I’m sure our son will come home from school with a family tree assignment.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 25, 2026

Their results showed that deeply lobed leaves evolved independently several times in separate branches of the Scalesia family tree.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 30, 2026

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

From Salon ● Jul. 27, 2026

Hopefully, her family tree will wow the class so much that if I slip in quickly after her, no one will notice how pathetic my findings are!

From "Code Name Kingfisher" by Liz Kessler