Understanding Family Relationships

Blood Relation
Family or Blood Relationship means persons connected by relations like –

father-mother, son daughter, brother-sister, grandfather-grandmother, uncle-aunty,
nephew-niece, brother-in-law sister-in-law etc. The list can go on and on adding
members from father’s side and mother’s side etc.
Questions in Test of Reasoning on Family /Blood Relationship are about the

relationship of a particular person with another person of the family, based on the
chain of relationships between other members of that family.
Family/Blood Relation Tests are an exercise to test the candidate’s ability to

comprehend and come to the crux of an issue from complex, lengthy and unclear
data.
Example 1: ‘Ram’ is the father of ‘Kusha’ but ‘Kusha’ is not his son. ‘Mala’ is the
daughter of ‘Kusha’.’Shalaka’ is the spouse of ‘Ram’. ‘Gopal’ is the brother of ‘Kusha’.
‘Hari’ is the son of ‘Gopal’. ‘Meena’ is the spouse of ‘Gopal’. ‘Ganpat’ is the father of
‘Meena’. Who is the granddaughter of ‘Ram’?
(1) Hari
(2) Mala
(3) Meena
(4) Shalaka
Solution:
‘Mala’ is the daughter of ‘Kusha’ and ‘Ram’ is the father of ‘Kusha’. So, ‘Mala’ is the
granddaughter of ‘Ram’. Hence, the answer is (2) Mala.
Some Common Terms
Meaning of some terms often used in questions on the family relationship

are given below:
a) Parent – Mother or father
b) Child – Son or daughter (even if an adult)
c) Sibling – Brother or sister (Including half brother and half sister - one parent in
common)
d) Spouse – Husband or wife
Basic Relationships:-
Aunt, Uncle, Niece, and Nephew
Most English speakers use “uncle” for any of four relationships: father’s
brother, mother’s brother, father’s sister’s husband, or mother’s sister’s
husband.
Again, “aunt” in English could mean father’s sister, mother’s sister, father’s
brother’s wife, or mother’s brother’s wife.
Brother’s or sister’s son is called nephew. Brother’s or sister’s daughter is
called niece.
Children of aunt or uncle are called cousins.
Relationships Involving the Term ‘-in-law’
General
Any relationship term ending with -in-law indicates that the relationship is by
marriage and not by blood. In other words, -in-law will be a blood relative of
the spouse.
In-law relationship terms are always written with hyphens. And the plural is
formed on the part before the “-in-law”;
For example, “brothers-in-law” and not “brother-in-law”. The only exception is the
general term “in-laws”, which is always plural.
Father-in-law, Mother-in-law, Son-in-law and Daughter-in-law
Father-in-law is the father of spouse; mother-in-law is the mother of spouse.

If parents get divorced and remarry, their new spouses are called stepparents,
not mother-in-law and father-in-law.
The husband of daughter is son-in-law; the wife of son is daughter-in-law. If
spouse has children from a previous marriage, those are called stepchildren,
not sons-in-law or daughters-in-law. The person is their stepfather or
stepmother, not their father-in-law or mother-in-law.
Brother-in-law and Sister-in-law
Brother-in-law” and “Sister-in-law” each have two or three meanings

as follows:
a) Sister-in-law could be
i) The sister of spouse, or
ii) The wife of brother, or
iii) The wife of spouse’s brother.
b) Similarly, Brother-in-law could be

i) The brother of spouse, or
ii) The husband of sister, or
iii) The husband of spouse’s sister.
Relationships Involving the Terms ‘Grand’ and ‘Great’
The relationships of the second generation are prefixed with the word Grand.
Similarly, for a person, the first generation above him would be that of his/her
parents (Father/ Mother). The next/second generation above him/her would
be the parents of the parents who would be called Grand Parents/ Grand
Father/ Grand Mother of that person. The next/ third generation parents would
be called Great Grand Parents/ Great Grand Father/ Great Grand Mother of
that person.
This also applies to the collateral relationships.
For example Son of nephew of a person is called Grand Nephew; Brother of Grand
Father is called Grand Uncle and so on.
The fourth generation relationships are called Great Great Grand. For example,
Son of Great Grand Son is Great Great Grand Son.
There are two ways Martha could have a stepsister:
a) If Martha’s mother marries second time, and her new husband (Martha’s new
stepfather) already has a daughter from a previous marriage, that daughter is
Martha’s stepsister because one of her parents is married to one of Martha’s
parents.
b) If Martha’s father marries second time, and his new wife already has a daughter,
that daughter is again Martha’s stepsister.
Summary of Some Common Relationships
Summary of some common Relationships is given below in tabular forms:
Details of Relationship Relation
Mother’s or Father’s son Brother
Mother’s or Father’s daughter Sister
Mother’s or Father’s father Grandfather

Mother’s or Father’s mother Grandmother
Son’s wife Daughter-in-law
Daughter’s husband Son-in-law
Husband’s or Wife’s sister Sister-in-law
Husband’s or Wife’s brother Brother-in-law
Brother’s or Sister’s son Nephew
Brother’s or Sister’s daughter Niece
Uncle or Aunt’s daughter or son Cousin
Brother’s wife Sister-in-law
Sister’s husband Brother-in-law
Grandson’s or Granddaughter’s son Great Grandson
Grandson’s or Granddaughter’s daughter Great Granddaughter

Understanding Family Relationships

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Understanding Family Relationships

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Blood Relation

Family or Blood Relationship means persons connected by relations like –

Questions in Test of Reasoning on Family /Blood Relationship are about the

Family/Blood Relation Tests are an exercise to test the candidate’s ability to

Some Common Terms

Meaning of some terms often used in questions on the family relationship

a) Parent – Mother or father

b) Child – Son or daughter (even if an adult)

d) Spouse – Husband or wife

Relationships Involving the Term ‘-in-law’

Father-in-law, Mother-in-law, Son-in-law and Daughter-in-law

Father-in-law is the father of spouse; mother-in-law is the mother of spouse.

Brother-in-law and Sister-in-law

Brother-in-law” and “Sister-in-law” each have two or three meanings

i) The sister of spouse, or

ii) The wife of brother, or

iii) The wife of spouse’s brother.

b) Similarly, Brother-in-law could be

ii) The husband of sister, or

iii) The husband of spouse’s sister.

Relationships Involving the Terms ‘Grand’ and ‘Great’

There are two ways Martha could have a stepsister:

Summary of Some Common Relationships

Summary of some common Relationships is given below in tabular forms:

Details of Relationship Relation

Mother’s or Father’s son Brother

Mother’s or Father’s daughter Sister

Mother’s or Father’s father Grandfather

Son’s wife Daughter-in-law

Daughter’s husband Son-in-law

Husband’s or Wife’s sister Sister-in-law

Husband’s or Wife’s brother Brother-in-law

Brother’s or Sister’s son Nephew

Brother’s or Sister’s daughter Niece

Uncle or Aunt’s daughter or son Cousin

Brother’s wife Sister-in-law

Sister’s husband Brother-in-law

Grandson’s or Granddaughter’s son Great Grandson

Grandson’s or Granddaughter’s daughter Great Granddaughter

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