broken home
Noun: A family unit in which the parents are no longer living together due to separation or divorce. This term often implies a household structure that has been disrupted from the traditional two-parent model, which can have social, emotional, or psychological impacts on the children living within it.
The term "broken home" is used to describe a family structure. It is most commonly applied when discussing the living situation of children whose parents have parted ways. * It is often used in sociological, psychological, and everyday contexts. * Note: While a standard descriptive term, it can carry a negative or stigmatizing connotation, as "broken" implies damage or deficiency. More neutral terms like "single-parent household" or "separated parents" are often preferred in modern, sensitive discourse.
- Sociological Context:
- Personal Description:
- General Statement:
The term is sometimes used metaphorically or in broader contexts to imply a foundational disruption. * Metaphorical Use: The scandal left the political party like a broken home, with former allies now bitterly divided. (This usage compares the fractured state of the party to that of a family split by divorce.)
- Single-parent family/household (n.): A family where children are primarily raised by one parent. This is a more neutral and factual term that does not imply the family is "broken."
- Separated (adj.): Describes parents who are no longer cohabiting but may not be legally divorced.
- Divorced (adj.): Describes parents whose marriage has been legally dissolved.
- Non-intact family (n.): A formal, clinical term used in some research to describe any family not consisting of two original, married biological parents.
- Dysfunctional family (though this is broader and can include families with other serious issues beyond separation)
- Split family
- Divided home
- Intact family
- Nuclear family
- Two-parent household
- To come from a broken home: This is the most common phrase using the term.
- Example: Many of the characters in her novels come from broken homes, which shapes their search for stability.
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a family in which the parents have separated or divorced