全家 (quán jiā) literally combines 全 (quán), meaning 'entire' or 'all', and 家 (jiā), meaning 'family' or 'home'. Together, it means 'the entire family' — referring to all members of a household, typically including parents, children, and sometimes grandparents living together. It emphasizes inclusivity and wholeness, not just a partial group.

This noun is commonly used in everyday contexts such as planning activities ('We’re going on vacation with the whole family'), describing shared experiences ('The whole family watched the Lunar New Year gala'), or expressing collective identity ('Our whole family supports this decision'). It’s neutral in register — appropriate in both spoken and written Chinese — and often appears with measure words like 一 (yī) or demonstratives like 这 (zhè) or 那 (nà). Unlike 家人 (jiā rén), which can refer more loosely to family members regardless of co-residence, 全家 strongly implies the full domestic unit present together.