family emergency
Relative in trouble
A family emergency is a sudden crisis involving a close relative—serious illness, accident, death, or other urgent situation requiring immediate attention.
The phrase often appears in requests for time off work or explanations for absence: I have to leave early; there's been a family emergency.
Because the term is vague and socially understood to warrant privacy, it sometimes serves as a convenient excuse when the real reason is less urgent or simply personal.
- crisisDecisive dangerous moment
- urgentNeeding immediate attention
- bad newsUnwelcome information
- hospitalMedical treatment facility
- accidentUnintended harmful event
illness · phone call · drop everything · last minute · out of town · rushing · panic · loved ones · death · final goodbye · grief · ambulance · bedside · bedside vigil · intensive care · life support · tragedy · sudden
- excusesexcuse, not my fault, overslept, alibi, excuses
- attendanceattendance, present, absent, here, attendance sheet
- late excusesrunning late, stuck in traffic, lost track of time, delayed, behind schedule
- school attendanceattendance, absence, absences, truancy, tardy
- school absencessick day, snow day, holiday break, summer break, spring break
- RSVP responsesyes, no, maybe, accept, decline
family emergencyfamily celebration
Festive gathering of relatives
family reunion · wedding · family gathering · good news · family vacation
family, emergency, families, familial, familiar, familiarity, familiarize, familiarization, unfamiliar