What do you call a family you create yourself through marriage or having children?
I want to distinguish between the family I was born into (my birth family) versus the one I made.
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1There isn't a specific term. You can either refer to "starting a family", or use "my wife/husband and children."– MickCommented Dec 23, 2016 at 19:44
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2The term nuclear family is used to describe a simple family of parents and their children - as opposed to extended family which encompasses grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins etc. Though the term nuclear family could equally apply to one's birth family, I tend to use the expression my own nuclear family if I wish to make it clear that I am speaking about my children plus my wife and myself only.– WS2Commented Dec 23, 2016 at 19:54
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Wow, do you think I'll end up on even more government lists if I use that term a lot? I worry about that kind of thing a lot, but I probably shouldn't.– Thom Blair IIICommented Dec 23, 2016 at 19:55
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1You will if you refer to your children as the "aliens". ;-)– MickCommented Dec 23, 2016 at 19:59
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That is definitely getting too close to black helicopter territory!– Thom Blair IIICommented Dec 23, 2016 at 20:00
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1 Answer
You might call it your household:
The inhabitants of a house considered collectively; a group of people (esp. a family) living together as a unit; a domestic establishment (including any servants, attendants, etc.).
However, this of course presumes that your family is not separated. It does sound a little archaic though, but saying something like:
The rest of my family is very conservative but my household is quite liberal.
The definition states it includes servants, but I wouldn't jump to this understanding as an American, it might be different in other countries or social levels.
There's also family unit:
n. a family considered as a single entity, esp. as a discrete constituent of society; the primary social group, traditionally consisting of parents and their children.
(OED)
But this sounds almost statistical in nature to me, I would be hard-pressed to use it naturally in conversation.
answered Dec 23, 2016 at 19:54
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You need to be careful. A household can also include servants.– MickCommented Dec 23, 2016 at 19:58
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Bear in mind that household would also include your resident servants, pets etc. One of the prophets in the Old Testament is recorded as having several thousand in his "household" - most of them probably slaves.– WS2Commented Dec 23, 2016 at 19:58
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@Mick Ah yes, I forgot to talk about that. I don't think many people would understand "household" that way, but maybe I'm just not rich enough. Commented Dec 23, 2016 at 20:00
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@WS2 See my comment about servants. and re: pets, I think it would be clear from context whether you're discussing just humans or also pets. Commented Dec 23, 2016 at 20:01