familial

adjective

fa·​mil·​ial fə-ˈmil-yəl 

-ˈmi-lē-əl

1

: tending to occur in more members of a family than expected by chance alone

a familial disorder

2

: of, relating to, or suggestive of a family

has familial ties to the area

a familial atmosphere

Synonyms

• household

Examples of familial in a Sentence

The company has created a familial atmosphere in its offices.

it's a familial duty as well as a tradition for everyone in my family to eat dinner together

Recent Examples on the Web

Meanwhile, the baby's middle names are a familial tribute. —Janine Henni, PEOPLE, 14 Oct. 2025

What if familial damage is too late to repair? —Christian Zilko, IndieWire, 9 Oct. 2025

The film weaves together comedic and dramatic elements while examining the tension between personal identity and familial expectations. —Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 8 Oct. 2025

Fye pointed to an opportunity for Ionis to expand olezarsen, currently used to reduce triglycerides in adults with familial chylomicronemia syndrome, or FCS, into the severe hypertriglyceridemia market, or sHTG. —Lisa Kailai Han, CNBC, 8 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

French, from Latin familia

First Known Use

1843, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing familial

• familial adenomatous polyposis
• familial hypercholesterolemia
• inter-familial

Kids Definition

familial

adjective

fa·​mil·​ial fə-ˈmil-yəl 

: of, relating to, or typical of a family

Medical Definition

familial

adjective

fa·​mil·​ial fə-ˈmil-yəl 

: tending to occur in more members of a family than expected by chance alone

a familial disorder

compare acquired sense 1, congenital sense 2, hereditary