Family Structures

noun blood relationship

• The study of consanguinity is important in understanding genetic diseases.
• Consanguinity is when family members marry each other.
• Some people think consanguinity is weird.
• Consanguinity can create a tangled web of relationships.

noun the act of fostering or being fostered; the care and protection given to a child by someone other than its natural or adoptive parents

• Fosterage is a practice where a child is raised by someone who is not their biological parent.
• I heard they are considering fosterage for their neighbor's child.
• I never knew fosterage could be so complicated.
• In literature, the theme of fosterage often symbolizes the idea of nurturing and growth.

noun a child who has been abandoned and found without any identification

adjective relating to a foundling or foundlings

• The orphanage took in a foundling who was left on their doorstep.
• The town rallied together to support the foundling they found abandoned in the park.
• Hey, did you hear about that baby foundling that was left at the fire station?
• The new employee felt like a foundling in the corporate world, trying to find their place among experienced colleagues.

noun a line of descent traced through the paternal side of a family

• The patrilineage of the royal family can be traced back for centuries.
• My friend is really into genealogy and has been researching his patrilineage.
• I never really cared about my patrilineage until I found out my ancestors were pirates!
• In some cultures, patrilineage is seen as a symbol of strength and power.

noun A man who is the father of a child, especially one who is not married to the child's mother.

verb None

adjective None

adverb None

pronoun None

preposition None

conjunction None

interjection None

article None

• The babyfather of the child is actively involved in co-parenting.
• She's been having issues with her babyfather lately.
• Her babyfather ain't stepping up to his responsibilities.
• He was like a ghost, a distant figure, a mere babyfather to the family.

adjective relating to or tracing descent through the male line

• In agnatic societies, descent is traced through the male line.
• In some families, agnatic inheritance is still practiced.
• I heard that guy is all about that agnatic stuff.
• The company's leadership structure is often described as agnatic, with decision-making power concentrated in a few key individuals.

noun the practice of marrying one's sibling

• Adelphogamy is the practice of marrying within one's own family or clan.
• I heard adelphogamy was common among certain royal families in history.
• People used to joke that adelphogamy was just a fancy way of saying marrying your cousin.
• In a figurative sense, adelphogamy can refer to any close-knit community where relationships are limited to within the group.