The connotative meaning of family is originally the people that live in the same household together; usually consists of a father, mother, and children. The meaning of the word has multiple variations, though. People could refer to close friends as family and a family could consist of more than a mere collection of parents and children. For example, a grandmother or grandfather could be living with the family. Moreover, as the times change, the term family may thought of differently. Today, a family may consist of parents of the same sex--contrary to the ordinary family of say, the 1950s.