Family vocabulary in English: 14 words for relatives and in-laws

When you talk about your family, you need one word for each person: mom, aunt, cousin, and so on. Here are the words you will use most, from close family to in-laws and step-relatives.

Family and relative words

• my mother / my mom“Mom” is the informal word.
• my father / my dad“Dad” is the informal word.
• my sisterA female sibling: a girl or woman with the same parents as you.
• my brotherA male sibling: a boy or man with the same parents as you.
• my grandmother / my grandmaYour mother’s or father’s mother. “Grandma” is informal.
• my grandfather / my grandpaYour mother’s or father’s father. “Grandpa” is informal.
• my auntYour mother’s or father’s sister, or your uncle’s wife.
• my uncleYour mother’s or father’s brother, or your aunt’s husband.
• my cousinThe child of your aunt or uncle. Boy or girl.
• my nephew / my nieceThe son or daughter of your brother or sister.
• my mother-in-lawYour husband’s or wife’s mother.
• my father-in-lawYour husband’s or wife’s father.
• my brother-in-lawYour husband’s or wife’s brother, or your sister’s husband.
• my stepmother / my stepfatherYour dad’s new wife (not your mom) / your mom’s new husband (not your dad).

Cousin is the same for a boy and a girl. If you need to be specific, use a name: my cousin Olena.

Step- and in-law are two different ideas. Stepmother and stepbrother come from a parent’s new marriage, and you usually don’t share a parent with them. Mother-in-law and brother-in-law come from your partner’s family. A common mistake is to say “my sister” for your husband’s or wife’s sister: she is your sister-in-law. Write stepmother as one word and mother-in-law with a hyphen.

Useful phrases about family

To talk about your family, use have in the Present Simple (see Present Simple rules and examples):

• I have a big family. — a simple start for any talk about your family
• I don’t have any brothers or sisters. — a clear way to say you are an only child
• This is my stepsister, Maria. — when your parent has a new partner with a daughter
• My in-laws live in Lviv. — your partner’s family, all together (in-laws = relatives through marriage)

Check yourself

Tell your family story in English at a free trial lesson, and we will help you turn these words into short sentences you can say out loud. Not sure of your level yet? Try our language level tests.