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Meaning & use

a broken home

phrase·Advanceddisapprovingold-fashioned

Last updated

UK/ə ˌbrəʊkən ˈhəʊm/
US/ə ˌbroʊkən ˈhoʊm/
Usage warning: this word is disapproving. It shows a negative opinion, so take care with who and what you use it about.

Meaning

  1. phrasecountabledisapprovingold-fashioned

    A family in which the parents have separated or divorced, especially when this is thought to affect the children.

    Grammar: Countable: 'a broken home', 'two broken homes'. Often used in the phrase 'from a broken home'.

    Patterns

    • from a broken home
    • come from a broken home
    • a child from a broken home

    The study looked at children from broken homes.

    He grew up in a broken home and rarely saw his father.

    Teachers were told not to assume that a child from a broken home would struggle.

Word forms

pluralbroken homes

Common combinations

come from a broken home
She came from a broken home but did well at school.
a child from a broken home
The charity supports children from broken homes.
grow up in a broken home
He grew up in a broken home and moved house many times.

Synonyms and how they differ

a single-parent family
Neutral and common; it describes the family structure, not a problem, so it avoids the judgmental tone of 'broken home'.
a separated family
More formal and neutral; it can also refer to family members living in different countries.

Opposites

a stable homean intact family

Commonly confused: a broken home or a broken family?

a broken home vs a broken family

Similar but less common; 'broken home' is the fixed phrase. Both can sound judgmental.

Practice

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