#35- 25 Words for Family Relationships

Hi there! Welcome to episode #35 of The Real Life English with Gabby Podcast!

In this episode, you'll be learning 25 popular slang words, phrasal verbs, and idioms for talking about family and family relationships. In American culture, we talk about family relationships a lot with most people that we meet. Family is a common small talk topic and general topic of conversation in our daily lives.

For this reason, it’s very important that you learn vocabulary for family and family members. This episode focuses on teaching you words that you can use when talking about family relationships and even casual names for your relatives. After listening to this episode and using this Study Guide, you’ll be able to speak about family with CONFIDENCE and be one step closer to speaking English like a native speaker.

Get your FREE Study Guide >> HERE <<

The Study Guide includes: 

• All words and definitions
• Example sentences
• Practice Activities
• Transcript

Don't forget to check out my Idioms book >> Real American Idioms. Click for more information <<

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Transcript

[00:00:00] On this episode of the Real Life English with Gabby podcast, you'll be learning over 30 phrasal verbs, slang words, and idioms about love and family. You'll be learning vocabulary like spitting image, chip off the old block, in the blood, live up to, and more. Let's get to it.

Hey there, welcome to the Real Life English with Gabby podcast. I'm your host, Gabby, your fun and friendly English teacher from the one and only New York City. My goal is to teach you phrasal verbs, idioms, and slang that will help you speak English confidently and understand real American conversations.

Are you ready to improve your English skills? Let's jump right in.

Hey there, greetings from a very, very cold New York City. As I've taught you in the past, it's brick outside. It's not even [00:01:00] officially winter yet here in New York City, but we have had an Arctic blast coming down on us for the past few days. We kind of knew that this was coming because temperatures had been unseasonably warm in November. So we kind of knew that the cold was coming for us in December.

Right now, as I speak to you, it is zero degrees Celsius, but it feels like negative three.

We've got something called the wind chill here, and because it's very windy here in New York City, especially where I am in Brooklyn, it feels much colder than it actually is. You know, usually, we don't get these kinds of temperatures until January or February, but I have a feeling that this is going to be a really tough winter for us here in the United States because parts of New York [00:02:00] have already had snowstorms.

For the northeastern part of the USA, it's probably going to be a rough winter for us since we're so close to Canada. If you want to learn phrasal verbs, slang words, and idioms, including the slang word that you heard me use a few seconds ago, "it's brick outside," then you can head over to episode number seven, where I teach you all about winter weather and the cold.

I will put the link to this episode in the show notes, or you can just scroll back to episode number seven.

So, about today's episode: This time of year is all about family and love.

For those of you who are listening to it today, or the week that it came out, it's exactly one week before Christmas, and family and love are [00:03:00] very big during this holiday season. So learning vocabulary about this topic is going to be extremely beneficial for your English skills.

The first part of today's episode includes a story with the first 19 words and expressions.

After the story, I'll explain all of the new vocabulary words from the story. But then, I'm going to be adding nicknames for specific family members, and I'm going to be explaining them to you and giving some examples. So stay tuned for that after the story.

Before we continue, I want to let you know that there's a free study guide waiting for you. The episode study guide helps you remember what you learn in the episode, and it has all the words, definitions, example sentences, practice activities, and the transcript. To get it, just click the link in the [00:04:00] episode description.

Also, if you want to learn more idioms that Americans love to use, check out my e-book and workbook, Real American Idioms. This is different than most books because, firstly, I only teach relevant and popular words that are still widely used. I don't teach anything outdated or old. I only teach things that I would use myself and that I hear commonly in American society.

This is actually why I wrote the book. Whenever I wanted to teach my students idioms, all of the idioms books were so outdated. They would teach idioms that my grandparents or parents used when they were younger, and I was very unhappy about this. So I said to myself, "It's time to write my own idioms book that's current."

[00:05:00] My book is also different because it makes you work. I don't spoon-feed you the answers. Instead, I give you the context and then make your brain work to figure out the meanings. Then, after I explain them, you do some practice activities. This reinforces what you learn.

This is different because most idioms books, what I noticed is, they tell you an idiom, give you the definition, and then give you an example sentence. Then that's it. They're not really making you work for anything, and so you are less likely to remember.

This is why I use my seven-step method to learning vocabulary. I've based it on research and neuroscience that shows you need to be exposed to something six to seven times before you truly remember it. You can check out the link [00:06:00] in the episode description for more information.

All right.

Okay, let me tell you the 19 words that you're going to learn first in the story: pass down, blood is thicker than water, a father figure, look after, stick together, the spitting image, like father, like son, in the blood, the black sheep, keep it in the family, take after, a chip off the old block, runs in the family, live up to, a family affair, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree, grow up, pitch in, and close-knit family.

All right, so let's get to the story. [00:07:00] While I'm telling you the story, listen for the words and for the context. Then, when the story is done, I'll explain all of the new vocabulary words and give you some example sentences. Here we go:

The Delaney family was famous in their small town. They owned the largest jewelry business, which had been passed down for three generations. For the Delaneys, family was everything, and they believed that blood is thicker than water.

The head of the family, Mr. Delaney, was very popular in their town.

He was a father figure to everyone and was very generous with both his money and his time. He was a great father who taught his children to always look after one another and be kind to everyone.

He often [00:08:00] said, "If we stick together, nothing can break us." His oldest son, Michael, was the spitting image of him: kind, responsible, and hardworking. People often said, "Like father, like son." Running the family business seemed to be in the blood, because Michael loved it just as much as his father did, and he planned on taking over when his dad retired.

Michael's younger brother, Leo, was the complete opposite. He was known as the black sheep of the family. They normally say that the apple doesn't fall far from the tree, but in this case, it did. While everyone else worked hard to keep the business successful, Leo spent his time partying and avoiding responsibility.

[00:09:00] "I don't want to work in the family business," he said one night. "Why do we always have to keep it in the family? We can hire outside staff, too."

Their sister, Claire, had a special role in their family. She took after their mother. She had a lot of business savvy since she was a chip off the old block, but she preferred to be in the background because, even though business savvy ran in the family, she felt a lot of pressure to live up to everyone's expectations.

Every year during the holidays, the Delaneys had a big Christmas party for their friends and neighbors. It was a family affair that brought everyone together. It was a great success as usual.

But after the guests had all gone, Leo dropped a bombshell. "I'm selling my share of the business," he announced. The room went silent.

[00:10:00] Michael stood up, furious, and said, "Why don't you want to help us continue our family legacy? We need everyone to pitch in to make it work."

Claire tried to calm them both down. "Remember that even though Leo may not show it, he loves this family just as much as you do, Michael."

And then Mr. Delaney added, "No matter what happens, remember that you all grew up being a close-knit family. And that's exactly how it's going to stay. Our family always comes first."

They all decided to give him a few days to think about his decision.

After a few days, Leo called the family together once again and apologized. He told them all that he had decided not to sell and promised that he would help more with the family business. They were all [00:11:00] extremely happy. The Delaneys aren't perfect, but their love for one another is, and their commitment to their family proves that family is the most important thing in the world. The end.

Okay, now let's review the words that you just heard in the story.

First up, we have the phrasal verb to pass down. Pass down something or pass something down. This is to give or teach something to the new generation. For example, "The recipe has been passed down in our family for over a hundred years."

In the story, they said that the family business had been passed down, and this just means that it goes from one family member from one generation to another. [00:12:00] You can pass down stories, you can pass down family values, and you can pass down physical things.

Next up, we see that the family strongly believed that blood is thicker than water. This is a very, very popular idiom in American culture, and it means that family relationships are stronger and more important than other relationships. Some of you may believe this is true, and maybe some of you do not believe this is true. I've known quite a few people who had families that they didn't get along with, and maybe they would disagree with this. Whether you agree or not, that's your choice, but this is a very popular idiom. Here's an example: "Even though we fight sometimes, we always help each other because blood is thicker than water."

Next up, we have the phrase a father figure. [00:13:00] A father figure is a man who acts as a mentor or father, especially for someone who does not have a father. So, if there's someone whose father passed away, maybe they never knew their father, or their father has left, when they find another man to mentor them and help them, we call him a father figure. In the context of the story, Mr. Delaney was a father figure to everyone he met, meaning that he always acted in a very nurturing and caring way with people. For example, "After her father passed away, her uncle became a father figure to her."

Next up, we have the phrasal verb to look after. Typically, we say "to look after something or someone." This means to take care of something or someone. For example, "She stayed [00:14:00] home to look after her younger brother while their parents were out." You might be thinking of the three-word phrasal verb to take care of. These two are very similar, and oftentimes they can be used in the same way.

Next up, we have the expression to stick together. As you know, stick means to be attached to something, like "I'm going to stick this poster on the wall" or "stick the tape on the wall." So stick together means to stay close and support each other. We can use this when two things are attached, like "The papers are stuck together." But in a metaphorical or symbolic context, when we're talking about relationships, it means that two people have a very close relationship and they support each other heavily. For example, "Even during tough times, [00:15:00] our family always sticks together."

Next up, we have the expression the spitting image. I know this is very weird because it has nothing to do with spitting. The spitting image means someone who looks exactly like another person. Some of you listening may be the spitting image of one of your family members, or maybe you have a child that is the spitting image of you, or maybe you've seen someone who looks like a celebrity, and you could say, "Oh my gosh, he's the spitting image of Tom Cruise," for example. It just means that someone looks exactly like another person. For example, "She is the spitting image of her grandmother when she was young."

Next, we have an expression: like father, like son. [00:16:00] We can also say like mother, like daughter, but like father, like son is more common. This phrase is used to say that a son is very similar to his father. For example, "Tom became a doctor, just like his dad—like father, like son." Or, "Mary became a doctor, just like her mom—like mother, like daughter." We never swap the genders; we don’t say like mother, like son or like father, like daughter. We don’t typically say that.

Next up, we have the expression in the blood or to be in the blood. This is a characteristic or a talent/ability that is natural and seems to come from your DNA, your genes, or your family heritage. For example, "Playing music is in their blood because everyone plays an instrument." [00:17:00] We often say this when two actors get married and then their children act. For example, "It’s in their blood." Maybe you know the actress Drew Barrymore. She comes from the Barrymore dynasty, full of famous actors for the past 100 years in American society—actually going back to the silent movie era. So we always say, "Oh, Drew Barrymore has acting in her blood."

Next up, we have a really popular idiom. This can be considered an animal idiom, but also a family idiom. I’m sure most of you have heard it: the black sheep of the family. The black sheep of the family is a person who is different from the rest of their family. Often, this is used in a negative context. For example, "If [00:18:00] your family is full of doctors and professionals, but you decided to be an artist." This is not necessarily bad, but maybe your family thinks it’s bad. At times, we can use it in a good way. For example, if someone’s family is in the mafia, the yakuza, or a gang, and you’re not—you went to school and tried to do something different—we could say you are also the black sheep of the family. For example, "Jake is the black sheep of the family because he dropped out of school and moved away."

Next up, we have the expression keep it in the family. To keep something in the family typically means you don’t want something to be shared outside the family. Imagine if your family is having some drama. You could say, "Keep it in the family," meaning, "We don’t want to tell anybody else about this situation. We want to protect it." For [00:19:00] example, "They decided to keep their business secrets in the family."

Next up, we have the phrasal verb to take after. Take after someone, specifically, means to resemble or be similar to an older family member, either in your appearance or your behavior. You may be thinking of the phrasal verb look like. Look like is very specific for physical appearance. Take after can refer to your physical appearance, but it can also be your behavior, your mannerisms, the way you talk, or the way you move. For example, "Wow, she takes after her mother with her love for cooking." In this case, it’s about behavior.

Next up, we have the idiom a chip off the old block. [00:20:00] This is similar to take after, except that this is an idiom, not a phrasal verb. A chip off the old block refers to someone who closely resembles their parent, especially in their behavior or personality. Take after, as I said, could be physical or behavioral, but a chip off the old block specifically refers to personality or behavior.

I want you to imagine a block of ice, maybe like a piece of ice. You cut off one little piece or one little chip, and it's gonna be just like the block that it came from. And that's where this idiom comes from. For example, he's such a hard worker, a real chip off the old block. I will say, you don't typically hear people under 30 using "chip off the old block." However, this idiom is still widely in circulation because you'll hear it in TV shows. You'll hear it when [00:21:00] you're talking to people. So you don't have to use it, but you do have to recognize it because you're going to hear this at some point.

Next up, we have "when something runs in the family." This is a trait or characteristic that many members of a family share. It's similar to when something is "in your blood." Here, "runs in the family" is used as a verb: "to run in the family." For example, artistic talent runs in their family because everyone can draw or paint. If I were going to use "in your blood" here, I would say artistic talent is in their blood instead of artistic talent runs in the family.

Next up, we have a three-word phrasal verb: "live up to." This is often used with "live up to expectations." This means to meet [00:22:00] someone's expectations or fulfill someone's expectations—to meet someone's standards. For example, he worked hard to live up to his parents' expectations. So, if your parents expect you to do well in school and you do well in school, you have lived up to their expectations.

Next up, we have the expression "a family affair." This is an event or activity that involves all of the family members or most of the family members. Family was heavily involved. Her wedding was a family affair with all of her relatives helping out. In the story, they talk about the big Christmas party that all the family members helped to organize.

Next up, we have a very famous idiom: "the apple doesn't fall far from the tree." This is an idiom [00:23:00] that can be added to the end of the sentence or the beginning of the sentence, or it can just be said all at once after a thought. So "the apple doesn't fall far from the tree" means that a child is very similar to their parent. It's very similar to "chip off the old block," except that "the apple doesn't fall far from the tree" is more popular. Everybody uses "the apple doesn't fall far from the tree," meaning that when the apple falls, it still stays close to the tree or the family. For example, his father was a great athlete, and he is too. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree.

Next up, we have the phrasal verb "grow up." This is extremely popular. I would say top 25, top 30 most common phrasal verbs. So I'm pretty sure most of you have heard of "grow up," but I'm going to explain it anyway. To grow up means to become older, to become an adult, to [00:24:00] mature. For example, he grew up in a small town with all of his siblings.

Next up, we have the phrasal verb "pitch in." "Pitch in" means to contribute or help, especially as part of a group effort. This is similar to "chip in," which we talked about in the gift episode, where a few different people contribute their money or time. "Pitch in" means to contribute or help, especially as part of a group. For example, everyone in the family pitched in to clean up after the party.

And lastly, we have an expression: "a close-knit family." This is a family that has strong, supportive relationships. I would say that I come from a very close-knit family. I talk to my family every day, multiple [00:25:00] times a day. So, it's very common small talk here, where people will say, "Oh, tell me about your family. Are you close? Are you guys close-knit?" For example, her family used to be close-knit, but they have grown apart in recent years.

All right, now that you've learned all of the new words from the story, let me teach you some family nicknames. We often have different names for family members aside from the basic "mother" and "father."

As I mentioned earlier in the episode, American culture is very casual, very informal, so we have very informal names for family members. Some of these we use when we are talking to them. We call them these names. And other names are used to talk about them when they're not around. So first, let's [00:26:00] talk about our immediate family.

Our immediate family is our parents and our siblings. So this is our immediate family. We typically say, aside from "mom," "dad," "mommy," "daddy," "mama," "dada," as kids get older, one common thing for some older kids to say is they call their parents "old man" and "old lady."

For example, they'll say, "Oh, my old man bought me a car when I turned 18." Or, "Yeah, my old lady, she gave me money to go shopping for new clothes." This is not considered rude in American society, but we don't call our parents "old man" or "old lady." This is typically something that men, some guys, will use to refer to their parents. Like, I would never say this. I would never call my parents "my old man" or "my old lady," but it is very common to do so.

For brother and sister, we [00:27:00] say "bro" and "sis." "Hey, bro." "Hey, sis." Now, you may have heard these terms between friends, and that is correct. These are casual terms for our siblings, but also for our close friends. So, some of my friends, I may see them and say, "Hey, sis. What's up?" Or, "This is my sis. This is my bro." It's for friends that you see as family. On the same note, we also use the word "fam." "Fam" is a casual term for family. "Hey, fam." "What up, fam?" But again, just like "bro" and "sis," it's also used for close friends.

Another expression that we use for our parents is "my folks." "I'm gonna visit my folks this weekend." This is more common than "old man" and "old lady." I don't know why this started because "folks" usually just means "people," but it is very, very common for Americans to refer to their parents as their "folks." So, [00:28:00] again, "What are you doing for the holidays?" "Oh, I'm gonna go stay with my folks for two weeks." Also, some people say "pops" and "moms." So, "mom" with an S and "pops." "My mom and pops" or "my moms, my pops." These are very informal terms for "mom" and "dad."

Now for grandparents in American culture, there are a variety of names. Firstly, most people in the United States call their grandparents "grandma" and "grandpa." However, it really depends on the culture that you're from. So typically, someone from Latino culture, like a Colombian American, would call their grandparents "abuelito," "abuelita," "abuelo," "abuela." My Italian American friends, they call their grandparents "Nono" and "Nona." Other cultures say "Yaya," "Babcha." There are so many different [00:29:00] titles, but for Americans, we typically say "Grandma," "Grandpa," and even "Gramps" for "Grandpa," right? Like, "Hey, Gramps," and then "Gram," like "Oh, my Gram." We also say "Nana," "Mima." This is a southern thing. There are a lot of different names for "Grandma" and "Grandpa."

We also have a phrase called "glamma"—glamorous grandma. A grandma who's young and hip and glamorous. A fashionista. So they might say, "I'm a glamma. G-L-A-M-M-A."

Here’s the transcript with corrected punctuation and capitalization while keeping the time stamps:

Next up, we have a nickname for your cousins. This is extremely popular. I actually use this, where we call our cousins "cuz" or "cuzzo" or "cuzza." So, for example, when I see one of my cousins: "Hey cuz, I missed you. How are you?" or "Hey cuzzo. Hey cuzza." We don’t really say "cousin." We can, but it’s very, very [00:30:00] common to say "cuz," "cuzzo," or "cuzza" as greetings for our cousins. If people don’t use these short names, you could just call your cousin by their name: "Hey Beth," "Hey Sam," "Hey Tim." These are some of my cousins’ real names.

Now, next, we have two nicknames for your mother-in-law. We have "mother-in-love" for mothers-in-law that you love, and "monster-in-law" for those that you do not get along with. So, mother-in-law, mother-in-love, monster-in-law— which one do you have? There’s really no equivalent for your father-in-law.

Now I’m gonna give you some terms to describe your family. Okay? So, first of all, I already mentioned "immediate family." Your immediate family is your parents and your siblings. That’s [00:31:00] it. Then we have "extended family." This extends to grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. In English, we have something called a "nuclear family," which is a family unit that has two parents and their children living together in one household. So, that does not include families where there was divorce or mixes.

I currently have a nuclear family—my husband and my kids. And I grew up with a nuclear family with my parents and my sister.

But then we also have a "blended family." A blended family is a family that forms when one or both parents have children from previous relationships. If parents get divorced and they marry into other families where the people also have kids, it’s a blended family. So, you might have a mom and a daughter who marries a man [00:32:00] who also has a daughter. Then they come together, and they become a blended family.

Three other terms I want you to know:

Number one, "helicopter parents." Maybe some of you listening had helicopter parents, or a helicopter mom, or a helicopter dad. These are parents who are overly involved in their children’s lives. Maybe they control, maybe they micromanage everything that their child does. So, a helicopter parent is basically a parent who is always like flying a helicopter around their child. Their child does not have too much freedom. A lot of American parents are helicopter parents.

Then we have another expression, and that is "empty nesters." An empty nester, like a nest that’s empty. These are parents who live alone again for the first time since they had children. When children go away to college or get married, those families are called empty nesters. My parents [00:33:00] became empty nesters a few years ago when everybody moved out of the house. This is usually around retirement age, when people travel.

And then, the last expression that I want to teach you is a "dysfunctional family." A dysfunctional family is a family that had a lot of issues, a lot of toxic tendencies. A dysfunctional family is a family with unhealthy relationships and unhealthy behaviors. There was a lot of conflict, a lot of neglect, and poor communication. It was a very unhealthy atmosphere for people to grow up in.

So, you’ll notice, even though family is an extremely common topic here, for some people it’s very painful. So just letting you know that it’s still okay to ask about family, but that’s why the word "close-knit" is very important to know. Because you might ask [00:34:00] someone, "Do you have a close-knit family? Are you close to your family?" And you can tell by their response whether or not they want to continue talking about their family.

They might say, "Oh yeah, my family—we’re very close-knit," and they’ll light up and talk about their family. And then, other people might say, "Oh no, my family was kind of dysfunctional; we weren’t close-knit," and you’ll notice they really don’t want to talk about it.

So, I hope you enjoyed learning some of these extra words. These are just nicknames. If you watch a TV show and see family interactions, or if the characters are talking about their families, you’ll hear this. And in regular conversation with Americans, this will also be a very common topic. Now you know over 30 words for family, family relationships, and love.

So, go practice this study guide and use these words this week.

Well, that’s a wrap for today’s episode of the Real Life English with Gabby podcast. Be sure to download today’s study guide so that [00:35:00] you can learn how to use this vocabulary confidently. If you enjoyed this episode, don’t forget to subscribe for more weekly adventures in English learning. Also, I’d love to hear from you, so please leave me a review.

Thanks so much for tuning in!