Meaning & use
detached family home
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Meaning
nouncountableBritish
A house that stands alone, not joined to any other building, and is considered suitable for a family to live in.
Grammar: Countable: you can say 'a detached family home' or 'two detached family homes'.
Patterns
- a detached family home
- in a detached family home
They sold their flat and bought a detached family home in the suburbs.
The estate agent described it as an ideal detached family home with a large garden.
Prices for a detached family home in this area have risen sharply.
Word forms
| plural | detached family homes |
|---|
Common combinations
- a spacious detached family home
- The brochure showed a spacious detached family home with four bedrooms.
- a four-bedroom detached family home
- They are looking for a four-bedroom detached family home near good schools.
- move into a detached family home
- After years of saving, they finally moved into a detached family home.
- detached family home for sale
- There is a detached family home for sale at the end of our street.
Synonyms and how they differ
- detached house
- The everyday British term; 'detached family home' is more common in estate agents' descriptions and sounds slightly more promotional.
- single-family home
- The usual American term for a house built for one family; it does not necessarily stand apart from its neighbors.
Opposites
Word family
- detached adjective
- Standing separate; not joined to another building.
- semi-detached adjective
- Joined to one other house by a shared wall.
Commonly confused: detached family home or detached house?
detached family home vs detached house
A neutral term for any house standing alone; 'detached family home' adds the idea that it suits a family and is often used in property advertising.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'detached family home' most naturally?
Choose one answer.
A detached family home stands alone and is meant for a family, so a big garden fits. Options 1 and 3 describe flats, and option 3 contradicts 'detached' because it shares a wall.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “detached family home”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.