Higher taxonomic unit composed of one genus or several/many related genera, usually clearly separated from other families.
A group of related plants or animals forming a category ranking above a genus and below an order and usually comprising several to many genera.
A collection of closely related genera.
A group of genera with similar characteristics; these genera are more closely related to each other than to other families.
A taxonomic group of related genera, ranking above genus and below order; named with the suffix –aceae, as in Amanitaceae.
A natural group of genera, with certain important features of flower, fruit, and/or vegetative structure in common.
A group of genera which are considered to be closely related. The cacti (family Cactaceae) are one such; the rose family (Rosaceae) includes not only the rose but such fruits as the peach, blackberry, strawberry and apple.
A group of plants having biologically similar features—such as flower anatomy, fruit type, and so on and common ancestry, such as the family Liliaceae, encompassing lilies, onions, wild hyacinths, and trilliums.
In sociology, a group of two or more people related by blood, marriage, or adoption who live together.
For U.S. census purposes, a group of two or more persons related by blood, marriage, or adoption who are living together in the same household. Group insurance and some national health insurance proposals offer coverage for eligible individuals and their families. In this context family usually refers to an individual and his dependents, which, since dependents do not necessarily have to be related to or living with the individual, is quite a different definition. In fact the specific or detailed meaning is quite variable.
A group of people who are related to each other, especially mother, father and children.
The next major unit of classification above the level of genus. A plant family may consist of few to many genera, or in rare cases of a single genus only. The cacti (family Cactaceae) constitute an easily recognized family, as do the orchids (family Orchidaceae). Family names end in -aceae.
Two or more people living together, sharing common responsibilities and obligations, among them physical, emotional, social, and economic care, and related to each other by blood, adoption, marriage, or mutual agreement; also all of one’s relatives, regardless of where they live. The most basic form is the nuclear family, consisting of two generations in one household. The classic type of nuclear family is made up of father, mother, and children, but single-parent families are also nuclear, as is a homosexual couple raising a child. The head of the family is the person who primarily supports one or more others in the family; for income tax purposes, the head of the household is the person who contributes more than half of the necessary support of a family member other than a spouse.
The biological grouping which is a division of an Order, and is itself divided into Genera. All names end in-aceae.
Traditionally, this has been used in the health care setting to mean “blood” (or adopted) relatives, i.e. legal relatives. For example, a hospital patient may be permitted as visitors only the patient’s “immediate family”, defined as spouse, parents, and sometimes children of the patient. Also, this group is consulted during the care of the patient, kept informed, and involved in the decision-making process. This arbitrary definition obviously excludes unmarried persons, including homosexuals, and other friends, regardless of the nature and strength of the ties. In recent years, society has begun to recognize the fact that the people who play the role of family in a person’s life – those closest to the person – are often not related by blood or law, and in fact the legal relatives may be completely out of the picture.
This represents a fundamental category in classification, where all its members are closely related and share significant characteristics. For instance, the Buttercup family (Ranunculaceae) encompasses buttercups, nearly indistinguishable crowfoots and spearworts, along with similar plants like the Marsh Marigold and Wood Anemone.