ancestor

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noun an·ces·tor \ ˈan-ˌses-tər also -səs- \

Definition of ancestor

1 a :one from whom a person is descended and who is usually more remote in the line of descent than a grandparent

Her ancestors came to America in the 1880s.

b :forefather 2

2 :forerunner, prototype

an exhibit of the ancestors of the modern computer

3 :a progenitor (see progenitor 1b) of a more recent or existing species or group

the ancestor of the modern horse

See ancestor defined for English-language learners

See ancestor defined for kids

Examples of ancestor in a Sentence

My ancestors came to America during the 1800s.
Her ancestors were great sea captains.
an ancient animal that was the ancestor of the modern horse
The museum included an exhibit showing ancestors of the modern computer.
several languages that are derived from a common ancestor
Latin is the ancestor of Italian and French.

Recent Examples of ancestor from the Web

The festival grounds will be populated by folks dressed like their medieval ancestors, with stage acts, street acts, music, games, rides, jousting and more.

— dan kelly, kansascity, "KC events Aug. 31-Sept. 6: American Royal barbecue, Irish fest, Santa-Cali-Gon Days," 29 Aug. 2017
A Stark ancestor named Brandon the Shipwright is supposed to have vanished trying to go there.

— adrian daub, Longreads, "Here at the End of All Things," 24 Aug. 2017
First came the fossils. Pieced together, sketched and measured, the bones offered our first look at distant ancestors.

— gemma tarlach, Discover Magazine, "Proteomics: Moving Beyond DNA to Study the Past," 15 Aug. 2017
His ancestor, English immigrant William Amos, established Mt. Soma in the early 1700s.

— david anderson, The Aegis, "Maryland American breaks ground on Bel Air water impoundment," 13 July 2017
Indeed, some experts have argued that microsaurs include the ancestors of caecilians, with brachystelechids regarded as the caecilian sister-group by Anderson (2001).

— darren naish, Scientific American Blog Network, "The Microsaurs of Yore," 7 July 2017
Their efforts are a radical statement, of an African-American family that refuses to capitulate and sell the land to its white competitors — men who once enslaved the siblings' ancestors on this very soil.

— nina metz, chicagotribune.com, "'Queen Sugar' actress talks Evanston, female directors and on-screen relationships," 5 July 2017
This subtle orientation can persist even among middle-class descendants of the working-class ancestors who instilled it.

— john mcwhorter, National Review, "Stop Obsessing Over Race and IQ," 5 July 2017
For almost a century, Neandertals were considered the ancestors of modern humans.

— ann gibbons, Science | AAAS, "Neandertals and modern humans started mating early," 4 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'ancestor.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of ancestor

Middle English ancestre, from Anglo-French, from Latin antecessor predecessor, from antecedere to go before, from ante- + cedere to go

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 13th century

See Words from the same year

ancestor Synonyms

Synonyms

father, forebear (also forbear), forebearer, forefather, grandfather, primogenitor, progenitor

Antonyms

descendant (also descendent)

Related Words

antecessor, predecessor [archaic]; ancestress, foremother, grandmother, matriarch; grandsire [archaic], patriarch, sire [archaic]; ancestry, antecedents, roots

Near Antonyms

children, family, issue, lineage, offspring, posterity, progeny, seed, stock; daughter, heir, inheritor, scion, son, successor

Other Biology Terms

autochthonous, fecund, homunculus, phylogeny, substrate

ANCESTOR Defined for English Language Learners

ancestor

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noun

Definition of ancestor for English Language Learners

: a person who was in someone's family in past times : one of the people from whom a person is descended
: an animal in the past from which a modern animal developed
: something in the past from which something else has developed