household
/ˈhaʊs.həʊld/ IELTSAcademic
noun
A household is all the people who live together in one home. It can also mean the home itself as a unit for planning or official records.
- Our household has five people.
- The survey asked about income per household.
- Many households use two incomes.
Adinary Nuance
Household is broader than family. A household includes everyone who lives at one address, even if they are not related. It is also more neutral and official than everyday words like home or family.
In other languages
- Vietnamese
- hộ gia đình
- Spanish
- hogar
- Chinese
- 家庭
- Japanese
- 世帯
- Korean
- 가구
Etymology
Household comes from Old English hūs and hāl, used together for a home and the people in it. The word has been used in English since the early medieval period.
Common phrases
household incomehousehold expenseshousehold choreshousehold survey
Synonyms
Related words
Frequently asked questions
- Is household the same as family?
- Not exactly. A household is everyone living in one home, while a family means people related by blood, marriage, or adoption.
- Is household formal or informal?
- It is fairly formal and common in reports, forms, and news writing.
- Can one person be a household?
- Yes. A person living alone can be a one-person household.