forefather

noun fore·fa·ther \ ˈfȯr-ˌfä-t͟hər \

Definition of forefather

1 :ancestor 1a

2 :a person of an earlier period and common heritage

See forefather defined for English-language learners

See forefather defined for kids

Examples of forefather in a Sentence

our forefathers bought this farm, and our family has worked it for three generations

Recent Examples of forefather from the Web

After all, Game of Thrones ultimately focuses on human drama and is undoubtedly interested in the weight of history and the decisions of forefathers.

— nathan mattise, Ars Technica, "An appreciation of Game of Thrones‘ White Walkers from a zombie diehard," 29 Aug. 2017
Or Ron Conway, the storied venture capitalist, and forefather of Silicon Valley’s great flourishing?

— vanityfair.com, "A Fake Mayo Company, a Jaden Smith Lawsuit, and the End of the Silicon Valley Dream," 3 Aug. 2017
Or Ron Conway, the storied venture capitalist, and forefather of Silicon Valley’s great flourishing?

— maya kosoff, The Hive, "A Fake Mayo Company, a Jaden Smith Lawsuit, and the End of the Silicon Valley Dream," 3 Aug. 2017
There is a 1971 village law that prohibits bikes on footpaths within parks except on paths provided for that purpose, but no one is sure whether Mariemont’s forefathers ever gave a thumbs-up to bikes in the parks, Policastro said.

— jeanne houck, Cincinnati.com, "CORA: Don't blame us for damaged burial mounds, pioneer sites in Mariemont," 25 July 2017
The irony is that the ideological forefather of ISIS, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, was a Jordanian terrorist in awe of the al-Nuri mosque and of the man who created it at the end of his reign eight centuries ago.

— tim lister, CNN, "Al-Nuri mosque: The irony of ISIS' iconoclasm," 22 June 2017
Our forefathers — the people in front of us — were smart enough to set aside money for things like this.

— peter marteka, Courant Community, "South Windsor To Purchase Popular Sledding Hill," 8 June 2017
Among his forefathers, his wife said, was William Booth, founder of the Salvation Army.

— emily langer, The Denver Post, "William J.L. Sladen, scientific adventurer featured in “Fly Away Home,” dies at 96," 2 June 2017
Hillsborough County will honor the CWF forefathers Luttrall and Graham during the CWF Fanfest on Saturday, June 3 at the American Legion Hall Post 147, 17383 Gunn Hwy.

— jim varsallone, miamiherald, "Honoring Cowboy Luttrall, Eddie Graham at CWF Fanfest," 2 June 2017

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

First Known Use of forefather

14th century

forefather Synonyms

Synonyms

father, forebear (also forbear), forebearer, ancestor, 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

FOREFATHER Defined for English Language Learners

forefather

noun

Definition of forefather for English Language Learners

: a person (especially a man) who was in your family in past times
: a person (especially a man) from an earlier time who helped to create or start something modern or important