first family
Americannoun
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a family having the highest or one of the highest social ranks in a given place.
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(often initial capital letters) the family of the president of the U.S. or the family of the governor of a state.
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a family descended from a colonist or early settler in a country, region, etc..
one of the first families of Virginia.
Etymology
Origin of first family
An Americanism dating back to 1835–45
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.
Nvidia unveiled what it dubbed the world’s first family of open-source models designed to help researchers build quantum processors.
From Barron's • Apr. 14, 2026
There is footage of the highly choreographed move-in and move-out process that happens every four years when a new first family moves into the White House.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 31, 2026
The first family has expanded its reach across venture-capital firms, investment banks and others with a slew of new products in recent months.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 19, 2025
He also apologised to the president for any impression the audio may have created that the first family was corrupt.
From BBC • Jun. 21, 2025
“What do you know about that! I didn’t suppose they’d ever do a thing like that, friend or no friend. They’re the first family around here, you know. Proud as peacocks, all of ’em.
From "Tuck Everlasting" by Natalie Babbit
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
