extended family

noun

: a family that includes in one household near relatives (such as grandparents, aunts, or uncles) in addition to a nuclear family

Given space, there are ways in which even larger populations than the extended family can be accommodated under one roof.

—Paul Oliver

also : an extensive group of people who are related by blood or marriage or who otherwise regard themselves as a large family

Four out of every five people who go through a first divorce remarry … . Thus it is that husbands and wives, their former partners, children and stepchildren, and a whole constellation of grandparents and other relatives are brought together in the new American extended family.

—Michael Norman

During his five years at Owen High, he turned his teams into an extended family and tried to instill in his players the same sense of self-worth that Baldwin had imparted to him years before.

—William Nack

Synonyms

• household
• house

Examples of extended family in a Sentence

their extended family includes a grandmother and widowed aunt

Recent Examples on the Web

My extended family is pushing me to forgive and forget. —R. Eric Thomas, Chicago Tribune, 17 July 2025

At a Shavuot dinner with my extended family, a relative complained about Arab food-delivery drivers. —Guy Ben-Aharon, The Atlantic, 14 July 2025

The Fantastic Four were an extended family whose bonds were weakened by constant bickering. —Ekow Eshun july 11, Literary Hub, 11 July 2025

On July 6, Williams became the third person in his extended family to die in Indianapolis from gun violence. —Noe Padilla, IndyStar, 10 July 2025

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1935, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for extended family

• multifamily
• nonfamily
• stepfamily
• subfamily

Medical Definition

extended family

noun

: a family that includes in one household near relatives in addition to a nuclear family