Family is a huge part of, really, every culture in the world. But if you’re learning to talk about family in German, you might need to learn some vocabulary terms that account for some of the diverse family models you’ll encounter in Germany. Though the average German family might involve a married couple with one or two kids, many couples have children out of wedlock, or raise kids as single parents, or have extended families living under one roof. It’s also becoming more common for same-sex couples to raise children together.
Here is a list of essential vocabulary you’ll need to talk about family in German in all of its iterations. To hear how each word is voiced by a native speaker, just press the play button.
Essential Vocab For Family In German
the family — die Familie
the relatives — die Verwandten
the extended family — die entfernten Verwandten
the ancestor — der Vorfahr
the descendant — der Nachkomme
the parents — die Eltern
the mother — die Mutter
the father — der Vater
the children — die Kinder
the daughter — die Tochter
the son — der Sohn
the siblings — die Geschwister
the brother — der Bruder
the sister — die Schwester
the stepchild — das Stiefkind
the half-brother — der Halbbruder
the foster parents — die Pflegeeltern
the guardian — der Vormund
the grandmother — die Großmutter
the grandfather — der Großvater
the grandson — der Enkel
the granddaughter — die Enkelin
the nephew — der Neffe
the niece — die Nichte
the aunt — die Tante
the uncle — der Onkel
the cousin — der Cousin (masc.) / die Cousine (fem.)
the parents-in-law — die Schwiegereltern
the great-grandparents — die Urgroßeltern
the second cousin — der Cousin zweiten Grades