household
Americannoun
adjective
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of or relating to a household.
household furniture.
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for use in maintaining a home, especially for use in cooking, cleaning, laundering, repairing, etc., in the home.
a household bleach.
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common or usual; ordinary.
noun
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the people living together in one house collectively
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(modifier) of, relating to, or used in the running of a household; domestic
household management
Etymology
Origin of household
First recorded in 1350–1400, household is from the Middle English word houshold. See house, hold 1
Explanation
How many people does your house hold? That’s your household! A household refers to a family or group of people living together. It’s a social unit under one roof. All the people living in your house, including servants, make up your household. Don’t have any servants? Well, your roommates count as part of your household, too. In the middle of the night, your household might be asleep. Your household income could determine whether or not you get the pool in the backyard. Household can also be an adjective to describe — you guessed it — things that are in your house, like household appliances or household furniture.
Vocabulary lists containing household
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.
To your point: average household savings figures are often skewed by high-income households, meaning typical balances are significantly lower than headline averages suggest.
From MarketWatch • May 7, 2026
San Francisco already had a very low number of children per household, so it has been affected less by the nationwide decline in birth rates, he said.
From Los Angeles Times • May 6, 2026
If gasoline prices remain elevated for a prolonged period, it could squeeze household finances and cause a pullback in spending.
From Barron's • May 5, 2026
Data earlier Tuesday showed household spending rose 1.6% in March from February, its strongest increase in 30 months.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 5, 2026
Cousteau became a household name when he introduced the world to ocean and shipwreck exploration through Academy Award-winning films such as The Silent World and highly popular television series The Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau.
From "Shipwrecked!" by Martin W. Sandler
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.
