1
as in grandfather
a person who is several generations earlier in an individual's line of descent
Bridie's Irish ancestors immigrated to the United States in the 19th century during the Great Potato Famine
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in forerunner
something belonging to an earlier time from which something else was later developed
pinball machines—the ancestors of today's video games—go back to the 19th century
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of ancestor
Like its Swiss ancestor, this exceptional little wheel is made exclusively from late-summer and autumn milk from cows transitioning from fresh grass to hay.
—
Emily Monaco With Kat Craddock, Saveur, 9 Oct. 2025
Today’s electric cars, or as they are popularly known, are catching up at breakneck speed with their gasoline ancestors.
—Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 9 Oct. 2025
The soldiers’ pastimes of drinking, gambling, and brawling also offended many Bostonians, who retained the piety of their Pilgrim ancestors.
—Time, 9 Oct. 2025
In Mexico, the Day of the Dead is celebrated to honor the lives of ancestors and acknowledge the ever-revolving cycle of life and death.
—Sarah Buder, AFAR Media, 8 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for ancestor
Emily Monaco With Kat Craddock, Saveur, 9 Oct. 2025
Today’s electric cars, or as they are popularly known, are catching up at breakneck speed with their gasoline ancestors.
—Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 9 Oct. 2025
The soldiers’ pastimes of drinking, gambling, and brawling also offended many Bostonians, who retained the piety of their Pilgrim ancestors.
—Time, 9 Oct. 2025
In Mexico, the Day of the Dead is celebrated to honor the lives of ancestors and acknowledge the ever-revolving cycle of life and death.
—Sarah Buder, AFAR Media, 8 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for ancestor
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ancestor
Noun
-
There was my mother’s paternal grandfather, owner of 400 acres in South Carolina’s Low Country, murdered under sketchy circumstances, 397 acres of his property stolen from his widow, with no justice whatsoever.—
Kevin Powell,
MSNBC Newsweek,
10 Oct. 2025
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The accusations came after Harry—who is estranged from William, Kate and his father King Charles—sent a wreath and a handwritten letter to be placed in honor of his grandfather, Prince Philip, at the Burma Star Memorial at the National Memorial Arboretum in London on September 2025.—
Jason Pham,
StyleCaster,
10 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Compared to their forerunners in the tsarist era, with their party congresses held abroad, their executive committees, and their active recruitment in imperial Russia’s universities, Soviet dissidents remained a comparatively small and informal conglomeration of activists.—
Benjamin Nathans
September 24,
Literary Hub,
24 Sep. 2025
-
The event turned out to be a forerunner to the UN Earth Summit.—
Ted Johnson,
Deadline,
16 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
The reason the belief is so strong is because of the lessons his father, Lionel Sr,.—
Nick Friedell,
New York Times,
16 Oct. 2025
-
It’s been two years since Nowell became the lead singer in Sublime, the same band once headed by his late father, Bradley Nowell.—
George Varga,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
16 Oct. 2025
Noun
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The event is a precursor to the major United Nations Climate Change Conference in Belém, Brazil, next month.—
Meredith Kile,
PEOPLE,
10 Oct. 2025
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Some people in this group had Alzheimer’s dementia, others had what is called mild cognitive impairment of the Alzheimer’s type (which is sometimes a precursor to the disease) while another group with no evidence of dementia or cognitive decline served as a control.—
Robert Martone,
Scientific American,
10 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Altogether, the ensemble was similar to countryside ‘fits worn by her predecessors, Princess Diana and Queen Elizabeth, who had mastered the art of sporty but still feminine dressing for the UK’s chillier climates.—
Sam Reed,
Glamour,
15 Oct. 2025
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The meeting was especially notable considering Putin’s long-standing backing of Al-Sharaa’s predecessor, Bashar al-Assad, whose dictatorial regime was ousted by rebel forces in December.—
Catherine Nicholls,
CNN Money,
15 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Blending two worlds In April, the same team made headlines after developing the PoX 2D flash memory prototype, which achieved an extraordinary program speed of 400 picoseconds, the fastest semiconductor charge storage ever recorded.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
10 Oct. 2025
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Lightfighter's other prototype, labeled the V3-RH, is a 135-hp (100-kW) super-naked with higher handlebars and no fairing, built for acceptance into the professional MotoAmerica Super Hooligan series next year.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
7 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Ancestor.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ancestor. Accessed 17 Oct. 2025.
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