Synonyms of ancestors

ancestors

noun

plural of ancestor

1

as in grandfathers

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

• grandfathers
• fathers
• forefathers
• forebears
• grandmothers
• progenitors
• forebearers
• predecessors
• ancestries
• primogenitors
• foremothers
• patriarchs
• matriarchs
• ancestresses
• grandsires
• antecessors
• antecedents
• roots
• sires

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• descendants
• families
• children
• offspring
• issues
• lineages
• seed
• sons
• stocks
• daughters
• heirs
• successors
• progenies
• posterities
• inheritors
• scions

2

as in forerunners

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

• forerunners
• precursors
• predecessors
• antecedents
• prototypes
• originals
• granddaddies
• archetypes
• originators
• mothers
• daddies
• models
• foregoers
• fathers
• sires

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• descendants
• derivatives
• sons
• daughters
• offshoots
• outgrowths
• by-products
• spin-offs

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of ancestors

With a sensibility that reminds me of Barbara Cooney’s art and text, Rebecca tells a story inspired by the lives of Beaton’s ancestors. — Caroline Carlson, Literary Hub, 1 Sep. 2026

Its rise also marks the beginning of the Hindu celebration of Pitru Paksha, during which worshippers perform rites to honor ancestors by offering prayers and food to past members of their families. — Anthony Wood, Space.com, 31 Aug. 2026

While Qingming focuses primarily on one’s own ancestors, the Hungry Ghost Festival extends offerings to wandering spirits and the unclaimed dead. — ABC News, 31 Aug. 2026

One of these human ancestors might have interbred with Homo sapiens in Africa more than 50,000 years ago. — Ashley Strickland, CNN Money, 29 Aug. 2026

Essay Get the Lead Out Alex Manley Our ancestors were born to die by predators. — Naomi Skwarna, hazlitt.net, 25 Aug. 2026

For the last decade, genealogical consultant Grant Din has helped Asian Americans find information about their ancestors, many of whom passed through San Francisco’s Angel Island Immigration Station in the 1900s. — Stephanie Lam, Mercury News, 24 Aug. 2026

Amenities and experiences The name Anasazi refers to the Native American civilization that once inhabited the Four Corners region, renowned for their cliff dwellings and recognized as the ancestors of today's Pueblo peoples. — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 24 Aug. 2026

Hundreds of thousands of years ago, the ancestors of northern populations interbred with another species of shiner, leaving behind a genetic signature of ancient hybridization that survives today, but only in certain drainages. — David Duvernell, The Conversation, 24 Aug. 2026