Basic words and questions about family and relationships in English: How to talk about your relatives when you meet someone new

Check out these vocabulary words and phrases if you are a beginner who wants to talk about family and relationships.

If you study basic English, you must learn how to talk about family members and relationships. Many basic English courses focus on young learners, so this post will share useful phrases for adults who want to talk about their family when meeting someone new.

Names of Family Members in English

• Grandfather
• Grandmother
• Father
• Mother
• Husband 
• Brother
• Sister
• Brother-in-law
• Sister-in-law
• Son 
• Daughter
• Aunt 
• Uncle 
• Nephew
• Niece
• Cousin

Short Questions and Answers for Adults to Talk about Family 

• Are you married?
  • Yes, I am. / No, I am not. 
• What’s your husband’s / wife’s name?
  • His name is George. / Her name is Ruth
• How long have you been married?
  • We’ve been married for 22 years. 
• What does your (husband / wife) do?
  • (He / She) is a dentist. 
• Do you have any kids?
  • Yes, I do. / No, I don’t. 
• How many kids do you have?
  • I have three kids.
• How old are they? (How old is your son / daughter?)
  • She is 20. / He is 8. 
• What are their names? (What is his / her name?)
  • Their names are George, Ruth and John. 
• Do your children all live with you?
  • Yes, they do. / No, my daughter lives away at university. 
• What do they like to do? / What does he / she like to do?
  • My oldest daughter is married. She and my son-in-law like to travel. My son likes to play guitar. My youngest daughter likes to play basketball. We all like to spend time together. 
• It sounds like you have a very close family.
  • We do. On the weekends, my sister and brother-in-law usually come to our house with their kids. I love to play with my nieces and nephews. They say I am their favorite uncle / aunt. 
• It sounds like you have a great family.
  • We’d love to have you visit us sometime. 
• Thank you, where do you live?
  • We live in an apartment in the city center. / We live in a house in the suburbs. 

Any relative through marriage is your in-law. My wife’s parents are my mother-in-law and father-in-law. If my children get married, their spouse is my son-in-law or daughter-in-law.  My wife’s siblings are my brother-in-law and sister-in-law. If my brother or sister is married, their spouse is also my brother-in-law or sister-in-law. 

If my brother or sister has kids, the child is my niece (if she is a girl) or my nephew (if he is a boy). 

The children call me uncle if I am a man, and aunt if I am a woman. In English, uncle and aunt is the same word if it is an older or younger sibling on your mother’s side or father’s side – they are all simply your aunt and uncle. This is different from many languages which have different words for father’s older brother, father’s sister, mother’s sister, mother’s younger brother, and so on. In English it is all simply aunt and uncle.