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

This type of eating pattern mimics the pattern of our ancestors, which is directly connected with our innate metabolism. — Melissa Rudy, FOXNews.com, 6 July 2026

The plants and animals Williford’s ancestors held relationships with became strangers. — Los Angeles Times, 9 July 2026

Ultimately, people’s emotions (greed and fear) about money and investing haven’t changed much over time, and their actions typically resemble those of their ancestors. — Kenneth G. Winans, Forbes.com, 8 July 2026

The driving force for the tour is the idea that Black Americans and Muslims must unapologetically tell their own story, something their ancestors couldn’t do. — Julie Carr Smyth, Chicago Tribune, 28 June 2026

Kean comes from a long line of public servants, stretching 250 years to the country’s founding when one of his ancestors became New Jersey’s first leader since independence. — Mike Catalini, Fortune, 30 June 2026

California is returning a stretch of rugged Mendocino County coast to the Indigenous nations whose ancestors once stewarded its shores. — Alex Wigglesworth Los Angeles Times, Arkansas Online, 5 July 2026

However, when her island's resources are threatened, Moana embraces her ancestors' voyaging heritage and heads out to sea to find Maui, deliver the heart of Te Fiti (which Maui stole back in the day) and save her people. — Brian Truitt, USA Today, 9 July 2026

And Owen — the New Zealand actress who first gained attention as the victim of domestic violence in Lee Tamahori’s grueling Once Were Warriors — brings warmth and earthy wisdom to Tala, who provides a living link to the ancestors. — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 8 July 2026