noun

wife

wife [wife wives]   [waɪf]    [waɪf]  noun (pl. wives   [waɪvz]  ;   [waɪvz]  )
the woman that a man is married to; a married woman
• the doctor's wife
• She's his second wife.
• an increase in the number of working wives
see also  fishwife, housewife, midwife, trophy wife, see husband and wife at  husband  _n., an old wives' tale at  old, (all) the world and his wife at  world  
Word Origin:
Old English wīf ‘woman’, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch wijf and German Weib.  
Collocations:
Marriage and divorce
Romance
fall/be (madly/deeply/hopelessly) in love (with sb)
be/believe in/fall in love at first sight
be/find true love/the love of your life
suffer (from) (the pains/pangs of) unrequited love
have/feel/show/express great/deep/genuine affection for sb/sth
meet/marry your husband/wife/partner/fiancé/fiancée/boyfriend/girlfriend
have/go on a (blind) date
be going out with/ (especially NAmE) dating a guy/girl/boy/man/woman
move in with/live with your boyfriend/girlfriend/partner
Weddings
get/be engaged/married/divorced
arrange/plan a wedding
have a big wedding/a honeymoon/a happy marriage
have/enter into an arranged marriage
call off/cancel/postpone your wedding
invite sb to/go to/attend a wedding/a wedding ceremony/a wedding reception
conduct/perform a wedding ceremony
exchange rings/wedding vows/marriage vows
congratulate/toast/raise a glass to the happy couple
be/go on honeymoon (with your wife/husband)
celebrate your first (wedding) anniversary
Separation and divorce
be unfaithful to/ (informal) cheat on your husband/wife/partner/fiancé/fiancée/boyfriend/girlfriend
have an affair (with sb)
break off/end an engagement/a relationship
break up with/split up with/ (informal) dump your boyfriend/girlfriend
separate from/be separated from/leave/divorce your husband/wife
annul/dissolve a marriage
apply for/ask for/go through/get a divorce
get/gain/be awarded/have/lose custody of the children
pay alimony/child support (to your ex-wife/husband) 
Example Bank:
• His long-suffering wife had to put up with his numerous affairs.
• His wife has just given birth to a son.
• I first met my wife at college.
• Mr Thomas is survived by his wife, Muriel.
• She's a classic trophy wife— beautiful and half his age.
• The general was accompanied by his wife.
• With a dependent wife and children, he can't afford to lose his job.
• a hostel for battered wives
• At that time there was an increase in the number of working wives.

• This is my wife, Julie.

kid

kid [kid kids kidded kidding] noun, verb, adjective   [kɪd]   [kɪd]

noun
1. countable (informal) a child or young person
• A bunch of kids were hanging around outside.
• a kid of 15
• She's a bright kid.
• How are the kids (= your children)?

• Do you have any kids?  Kid is much more common than child in informal and spoken NAmE.

2. countable a young goat

3. uncountable soft leather made from the skin of a young goat
• a pair of white kid gloves
more at a new kid on the block at  new  
Word Origin:
n. Middle English Old Norse kith Germanic German Kitze
v. early 19th cent. kid
 
Thesaurus:
kid noun C (informal)
• He's just a kid. You can't expect him to understand.
child • • boy • • girl • • toddler • • baby • • teenager • |informal youngster • |especially BrE, informal lad • |especially AmE, informal teen • |often disapproving youth • |informal, disapproving brat • |formal technical infant • |law minor • • juvenile •
Opp: grown-up, Opp: adult
a young kid/child/boy/girl/baby/teenager/lad/infant
a spoiled kid/child/brat
look after/take care of a kid/child/baby
Kid or child? Kid is much more frequent in informal and spoken American English. Child is not often used of sb older than about 12; above that age you can call them kids, teenagers, young people, girls, youths or lads.  
Collocations:
Children
Having a baby/child
want a baby/a child/kids
start a family
conceive/be expecting/be going to have a baby/child
miss your period
become/get/ be/find out that you are pregnant
have a baby/a child/kids/a son/a daughter/twins/a family
have a normal/a difficult/an unwanted pregnancy; an easy/a difficult/a home birth
be in/go into/induce labour (especially US) labor
have/suffer/cause a miscarriage
give birth to a child/baby/daughter/son/twins
Parenting
bring up/ (especially NAmE) raise a child/family
care for/ (especially BrE) look after a baby/child/kid
change (BrE) a nappy/(NAmE) a diaper/a baby
feed/breastfeed/bottle-feed a baby
be entitled to/go on maternity/paternity leave
go back/return to work after maternity leave
need/find/get a babysitter/good quality affordable childcare
balance/combine work and childcare/child-rearing/family life
educate/teach/home-school a child/kid
punish/discipline/spoil a child/kid
adopt a baby/child/kid
offer a baby for/put a baby up for adoption
(especially BrE) foster a child/kid
be placed with/be raised by foster parents 
Example Bank:
• He's only a kid. You can't expect him to understand what's going on.
• Here are some fun ways to teach your kids about healthy eating.
• I feel desperately sorry for the poor kid.
• I was the fat kid through most of my teenage years.
• I've tried to bring my kids up to respect other people.
• Now what are you two crazy kids doing?
• She had offered to watch the kids many times so Toby could go out.
• She had wanted more kids.
• She was crying like a kid.
• She was just a normal kid.
• That was kids' stuff compared with what lies ahead.
• The movie is pure kids' stuff from beginning to end.
• The older kids had lessons in the afternoon as well.
• They had adopted three kids.
• They had sixteen foster kids and two of their own.
• They're just a bunch of kids.
• We both wanted to have kids.
• a gang of local kids
• a skinny little kid who looked to be no older than fourteen
• a spoiled little rich kid
• legislation to protect kids from violence and harassment in their schools
• street kids who rely on their ingenuity to keep alive
• How are the kids?
• I have to take the/my kids to school
Idioms: kids' stuff ▪ no kidding ▪ treat somebody with kid gloves ▪ you must be kidding ▪ you're kidding

Derived: kid around 

verb (-dd-)(informal)
1. intransitive, transitive (usually used in the progressive tenses) to tell sb sth that is not true, especially as a joke
Syn:  joke
• I thought he was kidding when he said he was going out with a rock star.
• I didn't mean it. I was only kidding.

• ~ sb I'm not kidding you. It does work.

2. transitive to allow sb/yourself to believe sth that is not true
Syn:  deceive
• ~ sb/yourself They're kidding themselves if they think it's going to be easy.

• ~ sb/yourself (that)… I tried to kid myself (that) everything was normal.

Word Origin:
n. Middle English Old Norse kith Germanic German Kitze
v. early 19th cent. kid
 
Example Bank:
• Don't look so worried— I was just kidding.
• He was only kidding about the car having disappeared.
• Oh come on, who are you trying to kid?.
• I didn't mean it. I was only kidding.
• I'm not kidding you. It does work.
• Of course you don't have to work at weekends— I was only joking/kidding!
• She fired you? You're kidding! Why?
• They're kidding themselves if they think it's going to be easy.
• Were you joking/kidding when you told him to leave?

adjective ~ sister/brother (informal, especially NAmE)
a person's younger sister/brother 
Word Origin:

n. Middle English Old Norse kith Germanic German Kitze
v. early 19th cent. kid

child

child [child children]   [tʃaɪld]    [tʃaɪld]  noun (pl. chil·dren   [ˈtʃɪldrən]  ;   [ˈtʃɪldrən]  )
1. a young human who is not yet an adult
• a child of three/a three-year-old child
• men, women and children
• an unborn child
• not suitable for young children
• I lived in London as a child.
• a child star

see also  brainchild, latchkey child, poster child, schoolchild

2. a son or daughter of any age
• They have three grown-up children.
• a support group for adult children of alcoholics
• They can't have children.
see also  godchild, grandchild, love child, only child, stepchild 

compare  kid

3. a person who is strongly influenced by the ideas and attitudes of a particular time or person

• a child of the 90s

4. (disapproving) an adult who behaves like a child and is not mature or responsible
Idioms: child's play ▪ with child  
Word Origin:
Old English cild, of Germanic origin. The Middle English plural childer or childre became childeren or children by association with plurals ending in -en, such as brethren.  
Thesaurus:
child noun
1. C
• a child of three/a three-year-old child
boy • • girl • • toddler • • baby • |informal kid • • youngster • • lad • |formal technical infant • |informal, disapproving brat • |law minor • • juvenile •
Opp: adult, Opp: grown-up
a young child/boy/girl/baby/kid/infant
a little child/boy/girl/baby/kid/brat
look after/take care of a child/baby/kid
Child or kid? Kid is much more frequent in informal and spoken American English. Child is not often used of sb older than about 12; above that age you can call them kids, teenagers, young people, girls, youths or lads.
2. C
• She has three children
son • • daughter • • boy • • girl • • baby • • kid •
a newborn child/son/daughter/boy/girl/baby
have/give birth to a child/son/daughter/boy/girl/baby/kid
bring up/raise a child/son/daughter/boy/girl/kid 
Collocations:
Children
Having a baby/child
want a baby/a child/kids
start a family
conceive/be expecting/be going to have a baby/child
miss your period
become/get/ be/find out that you are pregnant
have a baby/a child/kids/a son/a daughter/twins/a family
have a normal/a difficult/an unwanted pregnancy; an easy/a difficult/a home birth
be in/go into/induce labour (especially US) labor
have/suffer/cause a miscarriage
give birth to a child/baby/daughter/son/twins
Parenting
bring up/ (especially NAmE) raise a child/family
care for/ (especially BrE) look after a baby/child/kid
change (BrE) a nappy/(NAmE) a diaper/a baby
feed/breastfeed/bottle-feed a baby
be entitled to/go on maternity/paternity leave
go back/return to work after maternity leave
need/find/get a babysitter/good quality affordable childcare
balance/combine work and childcare/child-rearing/family life
educate/teach/home-school a child/kid
punish/discipline/spoil a child/kid
adopt a baby/child/kid
offer a baby for/put a baby up for adoption
(especially BrE) foster a child/kid
be placed with/be raised by foster parents 
Example Bank:
• After they divorced, he refused to pay child support.
• Children grow up so quickly!
• He had old-fashioned ideas on how to bring up children.
• He's always been a problem child.
• How many children do you have?
• It was a bit lonely being an only child.
• My father died while I was still a small child.
• She couldn't imagine the pain of losing a child at birth.
• She didn't have her first child until she was nearly forty.
• She works in a centre for delinquent children.
• Teaching is particularly difficult when a class contains both slow and bright children.
• The children were quite unruly and ran around the house as if they owned it.
• Their first child was born with a rare heart condition.
• There are a lot of street children in the poorer parts of the city.
• They are expecting a child in June.
• We had trouble conceiving our first child.
• We have three teenage children.
• We've got three teenage children.
• What a precocious child— reading Jane Austen at the age of ten!
• You can't spoil a child by giving it all the affection it wants.
• a child custody dispute between divorced parents
• a school for gifted children
• an organization that campaigns for the rights of the unborn child
• big with child
• good food for growing children
• tax concessions for families with dependent children
• the bastard child of romantic fiction and horror.
• the emotional connections which ensure healthy child development
• therapy for sexually abused children
• All the children learn to swim from an early age.
• She was a child star but never made it as an adult.
• The book is aimed at the parents of pre-school children.
• The film is not suitable for young children.
• a child of three/a three-year-old child
• He took the children to Disneyland.
• I'm an only child.

• Will you put the children to bed

parent

par·ent [parent parents parented parenting]   [ˈpeərənt]    [ˈperənt]  noun
1. usually plural a person's father or mother
• He's still living with his parents.
• her adoptive parents
• Sue and Ben have recently become parents.
• It can be difficult to be a good parent.

see also  one-parent family, single parent, step-parent

2. an animal or a plant which produces other animals or plants

• the parent bird/tree

3. (often used as an adjective) an organization that produces and owns or controls smaller organizations of the same type
• a parent bank and its subsidiaries
• the parent company  
Word Origin:
late Middle English: from Old French, from Latin parent- ‘bringing forth’, from the verb parere. The verb dates from the mid 17th cent.  
Thesaurus:
parent noun C, usually pl.
• He's forty but still living with his parents.
mother • • father • • step-parent/stepmother/stepfather • • guardian • |informal, especially spoken dad • • daddy • |BrE, informal, especially spoken mum • • mummy • |AmE, informal, especially spoken mom • • mommy • • folks •
a good/bad/caring/loving/doting/devoted/proud parent/mother/father/dad/mum/mom
a stern/strict parent/mother/father/step-parent/guardian
become a/sb's parent/mother/father/step-parent/guardian/dad/mum/mom 
Example Bank:
• The study showed that children with involved parents do better at school.
• The subsidiary eventually outgrew its parent company and took it over.
• They have just become the proud parents of a baby girl.
• single-parent families
• the identities of the adoptive parents
• He's still living with his parents.

• We are looking for volunteers to act as foster parents.

father

father [father fathers fathered fathering] noun, verb   [ˈfɑːðə(r)] Click to play   [ˈfɑːðər] Click to play 

noun

1. a male parent of a child or an animal; a person who is acting as the father to a child

• Ben's a wonderful father. 

• You've been like a father to me. 

• Our new boss is a father of three (= he has three children). 

• He was a wonderful father to both his natural and adopted children. 

• (old-fashioned) Father, I cannot lie to you. 

see also  godfather, grandfather, stepfather

2. fathers plural (literary) a person's ancestors (= people who are related to you who lived in the past)

• the land of our fathers 

see also  forefathers

3. ~ (of sth) the first man to introduce a new way of thinking about sth or of doing sth

• Henry Moore is considered to be the father of modern British sculpture. 

see also  founding father

4. Father used by Christians to refer to God 

• Father, forgive us. 

• God the Father 

5. Father (abbr. Fr) the title of a priest, especially in the Roman Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church

• Father Dominic 

see also  Holy Father  

more at old enough to be sb's father/mother at  old, the wish is father to the thought at  wish  n. 
 

Word Origin:

Old English fæder, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch vader and German Vater, from an Indo-European root shared by Latin pater and Greek patēr. 
 

Thesaurus:

father noun C

• Gary's a wonderful father. 

parent • • stepfather • • guardian • |informal, especially spoken dad • • daddy • |especially AmE, informal folks • 

a good/bad/caring/loving father/parent/dad

take after/inherit sth from your father/parents/dad/daddy

become a/sb's father/parent/stepfather/guardian/dad

Father or dad? In spoken English dad is much more frequent. It can sound formal to say my father. 
 

Example Bank:

• Boland, a father of two, was arrested on charges of theft. 

• Elena's brother was a surrogate father to her kids after her husband died. 

• He followed in his father's footsteps and became a motor mechanic. 

• He followed the footsteps of his famous father into the film industry. 

• He had a domineering mother and a cold, distant father. 

• He has an ailing father and two younger brothers to support. 

• He has just become the proud father of a baby girl. 

• He is very good with children and would make a devoted father. 

• He paced like an expectant father. 

• He succeeded his father as Professor of Botany. 

• He was a wonderful father to her. 

• He was both a bad husband and a bad father. 

• I always thought of you as a second father. 

• I buried my father, and mourned his death. 

• I lost my father when I was nine. 

• Jesse is now married and father to a young son. 

• Meet your new father. 

• Ryan has gone looking for his long-lost father. 

• She followed her father into the legal profession. 

• She inherited the urge to travel from her father. 

• She kept the books that had belonged to her beloved father. 

• Some of his students regard him as a father figure. 

• The land passes on from father to son. 

• The new father took his son into his arms. 

• The two boys were like their mother in character, but Louise took after her father. 

• Their musician father encouraged their love of music. 

• Try your best to honor your father. 

• a married father of two 

• the grieving father of two children lost at sea 

• Ben's a wonderful father. 

• Our new boss is a father of three. 

• You've been like a father to me. 

Idioms: from father to son ▪ like father, like son 
 

verb

1. ~ sb to become the father of a child by making a woman pregnant

• He claims to have fathered over 20 children. 

2. ~ sth to create new ideas or a new way of doing sth

Verb forms: 

Word Origin:

Old English fæder, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch vader and German Vater, from an Indo-European root shared by Latin pater and Greek patēr. 

mother

mother [mother mothers mothered mothering] noun, verb   [ˈmʌðə(r)]    [ˈmʌðər] 

noun
1. a female parent of a child or animal; a person who is acting as a mother to a child
• I want to buy a present for my mother and father.
• the relationship between mother and baby
• She's the mother of twins.
• a mother of three (= with three children)
• an expectant (= pregnant) mother
• She was a wonderful mother to both her natural and adopted children.

• the mother chimpanzee caring for her young

2. the title of a woman who is head of a convent (= a community of nuns )
see also  Mother Superior 
more at necessity is the mother of invention at  necessity, old enough to be sb's father/mother at  old  
Word Origin:
Old English mōdor, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch moeder and German Mutter, from an Indo-European root shared by Latin mater and Greek mētēr.  
Thesaurus:
mother noun C
• She's the proud mother of twins.
parent • • stepmother • • guardian • |BrE, informal, especially spoken mum • • mummy • |AmE, informal, especially spoken mom • • mommy • |especially AmE, informal folks •
a good/bad mother/parent/mum/mom
sb's new mother/parent/stepmother/mum/mom
become a/sb's mother/parent/stepmother/guardian/mum/mom
Mother or mum? In spoken English mum/mom is much more frequent. It can sound formal to say my mother.  
Example Bank:
• Her distraught mother had spent all night waiting by the phone.
• She felt proud that she had raised four children as a lone mother.
• She inherited the urge to travel from her mother.
• The boys were like their father, but Louise took after her mother.
• The court decided she was an unfit mother.
• The two boys were like their father in character, but Louise took after her mother.
• caring for his sick mother
• his beloved mother
• the proud mother of the bride
• She's the mother of twins.
• This is my mother, Joan.
• an expectant mother

Idioms: at your mother's knee ▪ mother of something 

verb ~ sb/sth
to care for sb/sth because you are their mother, or as if you were their mother
• He was a disturbed child who needed mothering.

• Stop mothering me!

grandparent

grand·par·ent [grandparent grandparents]   [ˈɡrænpeərənt]    [ˈɡrænperənt]  noun usually plural
the father or mother of your father or mother
• The children are staying with their grandparents.  
Example Bank:
• I've sent photos of the children to both sets of grandparents.

• a present from his doting grandparents

grandmother

grand·mother [grandmother grandmothers]   [ˈɡrænmʌðə(r)]    [ˈɡrænmʌðər]  noun

the mother of your father or mother

grand·father [grandfather grandfathers]   [ˈɡrænfɑːðə(r)]   [ˈɡrænfɑːðər] noun

the father of your father or mother

zoo

zoo [zoo zoos]   [zuː]    [zuː]  noun (pl. zoos) (also formal ˌzoological ˈgarden(s))
a place where many kinds of wild animals are kept for the public to see and where they are studied, bred and protected
See also: zoological garden  
Word Origin:
mid 19th cent.: abbreviation of zoological garden, originally applied specifically to that of Regent's Park, London.  
Culture:
animals
The British and Americans are famous for being animal lovers, and many families have at least one pet. People from other countries often think British and American people are sentimental about animals, and say that they fuss over them and treat them better than human beings.
At weekends people in Britain often visit farm parks, safari parks (= parks where people can drive close to lions, zebras etc.), zoos, bird parks and sea life centres. In the US there are zoos and aquaria (= large tanks of fish), which are educational, and also amusement parks with animals, like Busch Gardens and Disney's Animal Kingdom.
Television programmes about animals are very popular. These range from factual programmes about wildlife to films starring fictional animals such as Lassie and Tom and Jerry. Children are given cuddly toy animals and picture books. Children’s literature has created many famous animal characters, such as Black Beauty, Brer Rabbit, Pooh, and Ratty, Mole and Toad in Wind in the Willows. Many animals in books have their own distinctive character: lions are typically brave, foxes are cunning and cats are proud.
There are laws against cruelty to animals in Britain and the US. People give generously to animal charities such as the RSPCA and the ASPCA, and there are animal hospitals and rescue centres for injured and abandoned animals. Most are fairly modern, and many animals live in a large enclosure similar to their natural habitat, rather than in a cage. Often zoos keep only animals that cannot survive in the wild or were born in captivity. Some breed animals to put back into the wild and try to raise public awareness about the need for conservation.
Many people care about wild animals. People feed wild birds in the winter and some have a bird table in the garden. In the US the National Wildlife Federation (NWF) helps people to create their own ‘backyard wildlife habitat’.
There are often campaigns to save species that are endangered (= that may become extinct), such as wolves and buffalo in the US, and red squirrels and hedgehogs in Britain. In rural areas people generally have much less romantic ideas about animals. In Britain hunting foxes with dogs arouses hostile feelings, especially among people living in towns, but the law to ban it, which came into effect in 2005, is seen by many people living in the country as an attack on their way of life.
In Britain and the US many people are concerned about animal rights, especially the use of animals in scientific research and public pressure has forced many cosmetics manufacturers to stop testing products on animals. Several groups, including the Animal Liberation Front and PETA, strongly oppose vivisection (= the use of live animals in experiments) and animal rights activists organize protests at laboratories where animals are used. Sometimes people who work or invest in companies that own the laboratories are threatened.
Concern about farming methods in which animals are fattened as quickly as possible in artificial conditions causes many people to become vegetarians or to buy only meat that is from animals that have lived in good conditions. 
Example Bank:
• These lions were born in the zoo.
• We saw a baby polar bear at the zoo.

• a badly-run zoo