Definition

Noun: A person who is connected to another by birth, meaning they share a common ancestor. This relationship is based on biological lineage, not through marriage or legal adoption.

Usage

The term "blood relative" is used to specify a familial connection based on direct biological descent. It distinguishes family members you are genetically related to from those related by law (in-laws) or social contract (adoptive family).

Examples

Advanced Usage

• Legal and Medical Contexts: The term is often crucial in legal matters (like inheritance) and medical situations (like determining compatibility for organ donation or assessing genetic health risks).
  • The court required proof that he was a blood relative to be eligible for the estate.
  • Doctors prefer to find a matching donor among the patient's blood relatives.

Variants and Related Words

• Blood relation: A synonymous term for a blood relative.
  • She is a blood relation on my mother's side.
• Consanguinity: (Formal noun) The state of being related by blood.
• Kin: A broader term for family and relatives, which can include both blood relatives and those by marriage.

Synonyms

• Biological relative
• Genetic relative
• Consanguineous relative (formal)

Antonyms

• Relative by marriage (e.g., brother-in-law, stepmother)
• Adoptive relative (e.g., adoptive father)
• Fictive kin (a person not related by blood or marriage but considered family)

Related Phrases/Idioms

• Blood is thicker than water: An idiom suggesting that family bonds (typically of blood relatives) are stronger than other relationships.
  • He decided to help his brother, proving that blood is thicker than water.

Noun

1. one related by blood or origin; especially on sharing an ancestor with another