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Forebear (also spelled, less commonly, as forbear) was first used by our ancestors in the days of Middle English. Fore- means "coming before," just as in forefather, and -bear means "one that is." This -bear is not to be confused with the -bear in the unrelated verb forbear, which comes from Old English beran, meaning "to bear or carry." The -bear in the noun forebear is a combination of be-, from the verb be (or, more specifically, from been, an old dialect variant of be), and -ar, a form of the suffix -er, which we append to verbs to denote one that performs a specified action. In this case the "action" is simply existing or being—in other words, -bear implies one who is a "be-er."
Examples of forebear in a Sentence
James Dodson
july 7, Literary Hub, 7 July 2025
Why did these Paleo-Indians, forebears of the Native Americans such as the Tonkawa, choose this area?
—Michael Barnes, Austin American Statesman, 2 July 2025
And centuries earlier, the colonists’ British forebears had brought an earlier monarch to heel, forcing King John to sign the Magna Carta and thereby setting a precedent of powerful limits on royal power.
—Tom Shattuck, The Orlando Sentinel, 30 June 2025
The latest washing machines require roughly 75 percent less water than their forebears.
—Alexander C. Kaufman, The Atlantic, 16 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for forebear
Cite this Entry
“Forebear.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/forebear. Accessed 11 Jul. 2025.
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