also: いえじゅう · かちゅう
whole family; all the family
Refers to every member of a family, often used when the whole family does something together.
On weekends, the whole family watches a movie together.
I lost my keys and searched all over the house.
The entire family was waiting for his return.
noun which may take the genitive case particle 'no', noun
all over the house; throughout the house
Describes something happening or being spread everywhere inside the house.
I cleaned all over the house.
The smell of curry spread throughout the house.
retainer of a daimyo; feudal domain; clan
Only with reading かちゅう
Historical term; refers to a samurai retainer serving a daimyo, or the domain/clan itself. Only used with the reading かちゅう.
In the Edo period, retainers swore loyalty to their lord.
The whole family went on a hot spring trip together.
The smell of freshly baked bread spread all through the house.
The whole family was overjoyed when I passed the exam.
家臣 is the standard historical term for a daimyo's retainer, while 家中 (read かちゅう) is an older, more collective word for the same group or clan.
一家 is a slightly more formal/literary way to say 'one household' or 'a family', whereas 家中 has a more colloquial, all-inclusive feel.
Standard kanji spelling for the common reading うちじゅう. Can also be read いえじゅう with the same meaning.
Alternate reading of the same kanji form, also common.
Historical reading for the feudal retainer sense.
Compound of 家 (house, family) and 中 (inside, throughout). The reading うちじゅう uses the native Japanese reading for 家, while いえじゅう is an alternate native reading. The historical reading かちゅう uses the Sino-Japanese reading and refers specifically to a feudal retainer or domain.