pedigree

noun ped·i·gree \ ˈpe-də-ˌgrē \

|Updated on: 18 Jun 2018

Examples: pedigree in a Sentence

Definition of pedigree

1 : a register recording a line of ancestors

The pedigree traces the family back to the 18th century.

2 a : an ancestral line : lineage

That horse has an impressive pedigree.

b : the origin and the history of something

Democracy's pedigree stretches back to ancient Greece.

; broadly : background, history

3 a : a distinguished ancestry

actions spoke louder than pedigrees in the trenches
—Dixon Wecter

b : the recorded purity of breed of an individual or strain

vouch for a horse's pedigree

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pedigreed

play \ˈpe-də-ˌgrēd\ or pedigree adjective

See pedigree defined for English-language learners

See pedigree defined for kids

Examples of pedigree in a Sentence

That horse has an impressive pedigree.
What is the dog's pedigree?
The puppy came with papers proving its pedigree.
Democracy is an idea with a pedigree stretching back to ancient Greece.
The company has an excellent pedigree with over a century in the business.

Recent Examples of pedigree from the Web

Whether Russia can manage that against Egypt and then Uruguay, opposition of considerably greater pedigree than Saudi Arabia, remains to be seen.

— rory smith, New York Times, "For Russia, Five Goals and One Big Sigh of Relief," 14 June 2018
College baseball draws little attention, being more parboil than hot stove, even for a team of the Beavers' pedigree.

— ron richmond for the oregonian/oregonlive, OregonLive.com, "Inside Luke Heimlich's senior season with the Oregon State baseball team," 8 June 2018
However, everything down to her favorite cocktail (a Southside) had a touch of preppy pedigree.

— ingrid schmidt, latimes.com, "An appreciation: I'll miss my friend Kate Spade and our time together in New York," 8 June 2018
Horses whose pedigrees are based on speed rather than stamina are unlikely to run their best, never mind improve, going 1 ½ miles.

— beth harris, The Seattle Times, "Justify bidding for rare Triple Crown sweep in Belmont," 8 June 2018
And the vast majority are purebred or designer mixes, with less than 2 percent of unknown pedigree.

— christy gutowski, chicagotribune.com, "Revised ordinance aims to stop breeders from selling 'rescue' puppies to city shops," 23 May 2018
While Kokomo touts the plus-arms of Jack Perkins (Louisville commit), Bayden Root (Ohio State) and Kyle Wade (Purdue), the Eagles bring cohesiveness and a laundry list of baseball pedigree.

— rich torres, Indianapolis Star, "IHSAA baseball: Zionsville knows exactly where it wants to go," 23 May 2018
The sun was shining on the royal wedding party — that is, a royal wedding party of corgis — on Tuesday in New York City, where Lifetime hosted a gathering of canines of unimpeachable pedigree.

— raisa bruner, Time, "Corgis Dressed Up As a Prince Harry and Meghan Markle for a Royal Wedding of Their Own," 8 May 2018
Still, serious horsemen don’t often spend serious money without carefully calculating their return on investment, and Hip 454’s pedigree practically leaped off the page.

— tim sullivan, The Courier-Journal, "Kentucky Derby hopeful Mendelssohn has the look and genes of a winner," 3 May 2018

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

Origin and Etymology of pedigree

Middle English pedegru, from Anglo-French pé de grue, literally, crane's foot; from the shape made by the lines of a genealogical chart

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 15th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

pedigree Synonyms

Other Genetics Terms

chimera, hermaphrodite, plasticity

PEDIGREE Defined for English Language Learners

pedigree

noun

Definition of pedigree for English Language Learners

: the history of the family members in a person's or animal's past especially when it is good or impressive
: the origin and history of something especially when it is good or impressive