as in grandmother
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Recent Examples of ancestress
The intersection of these two facts does convince me that William's genealogical ancestress, Eliza Kewark, did have South Asian ancestry (not totally surprising even in notionally ethnically distinct groups like Armenians or Parsis who have been long resident in India).
—
Razib Khan, Discover Magazine, 14 June 2013
Instead of being a reticulated mesh the genealogy of mtDNA is a clean and inverted elegant tree leading back to a common ancestress.
—Razib Khan, Discover Magazine, 17 Nov. 2010
Meanwhile, Alice, Dana’s ancestress, never becomes much more than a moral quandary: a stubborn victim who is unable to adapt.
—Julian Lucas, The New Yorker, 8 Mar. 2021
Yang Asha is the mythical ancestress of the Miao people, an ethnic minority in China closely related to the Hmong of Southeast Asia.
—Keith Bradsher, New York Times, 26 Nov. 2020
His own mother, aged ninety, who remembered her aunt, had been able to share stories of their ancestress with the grandchildren who’d had no idea, before now, what their background might be.
—Susan Choi, Harper's magazine, 6 Jan. 2020
Enshrined at Kashikodokoro is the sun goddess Amaterasu, the mythological ancestress of Japan’s emperors.
—Washington Post, 22 Oct. 2019
Enshrined at Kashikodokoro is the sun goddess Amaterasu, the mythological ancestress of Japan's emperors.
—NBC News, 22 Oct. 2019
Razib Khan, Discover Magazine, 14 June 2013
Instead of being a reticulated mesh the genealogy of mtDNA is a clean and inverted elegant tree leading back to a common ancestress.
—Razib Khan, Discover Magazine, 17 Nov. 2010
Meanwhile, Alice, Dana’s ancestress, never becomes much more than a moral quandary: a stubborn victim who is unable to adapt.
—Julian Lucas, The New Yorker, 8 Mar. 2021
Yang Asha is the mythical ancestress of the Miao people, an ethnic minority in China closely related to the Hmong of Southeast Asia.
—Keith Bradsher, New York Times, 26 Nov. 2020
His own mother, aged ninety, who remembered her aunt, had been able to share stories of their ancestress with the grandchildren who’d had no idea, before now, what their background might be.
—Susan Choi, Harper's magazine, 6 Jan. 2020
Enshrined at Kashikodokoro is the sun goddess Amaterasu, the mythological ancestress of Japan’s emperors.
—Washington Post, 22 Oct. 2019
Enshrined at Kashikodokoro is the sun goddess Amaterasu, the mythological ancestress of Japan's emperors.
—NBC News, 22 Oct. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ancestress
Noun
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Most people would be appalled if someone threw a party in the place where their great great grandmother was imprisoned and abused.—
Maurice Carlos Ruffin,
Time,
21 May 2025
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Before the big day, Prince Harry had warned Lubomirski that his grandmother and grandfather, Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip, had a low tolerance for lengthy photo sessions.—
Meredith Kile,
People.com,
20 May 2025
Noun
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Porter County Board of Commissioners President Jim Biggs noted his ancestors were among the first white settlers in the county in 1835, at a settlement a few hundred feet from the site.—
Doug Ross,
Chicago Tribune,
18 May 2025
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Moringa oleifera is native to Indian subcontinent, particularly the Himalayan foothills, while another species, Moringa stenopetala, grows in the Horn of Africa: southern Ethiopia, northern Kenya, and even Somalia, where Elba’s ancestors are from.—
India Espy-Jones,
Essence,
15 May 2025
Noun
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If Bill Rusher was a closeted gay man, he was tucked back there in the far corner, next to his grandfather’s golf clubs.—
Neal B. Freeman,
National Review,
13 May 2025
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My grandfather ran a hotel in Sorrento, where I was born.—
Felicity Carter,
Forbes.com,
12 May 2025
Noun
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These are our matriarchs – the most prominent women in the Book of Genesis.—
Mark Gerson,
FOXNews.com,
17 May 2025
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All bridesmaids, perhaps? Kris Jenner The matriarch and manager of the Kardashian family (which includes Kim Kardashian, Kourtney Kardashian, Khloé Kardashian, Kendall Jenner, and Kylie Jenner).—
Vogue,
Vogue,
16 May 2025
Noun
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New York is usually considered the antithesis of sprawl and Los Angeles the progenitor of it.—
Conor Dougherty,
New York Times,
10 Apr. 2025
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Meanwhile, most Cretaceous avian progenitors appear more birdlike, with short tails ending in a compound bone called a pygostyle.—
Paul Smaglik,
Discover Magazine,
12 Feb. 2025
Noun
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At her Hall of Fame induction two years ago, Crow was celebrated on both ends: by Stevie Nicks, her own hero and forebear, and Olivia Rodrigo, a 21st-century acolyte.—
Chris Willman,
Variety,
30 Apr. 2025
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Assimilation would have made life easier for French-speaking Babs and her forebears, but fitting in wasn’t for them.—
Lisa Henricksson,
Air Mail,
29 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Through our hair and its many rituals, remain the herbalism of our foremothers in the new world, passing down their ingenuity of homemade balms, creams, and oils for hair growth.—
Eshe Ukweli,
refinery29.com,
7 June 2023
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In fact, precursors to modern bleaching processes didn’t come on the scene until the turn of the 20th century, leaving our foremothers and forefathers plenty of time to get creative with their blonde pursuits.—
AJ Willingham,
CNN,
28 May 2023
Noun
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In the tradition of jam forefathers like the Dead and the Allman Brothers Band, Goose often soar during the concluding portions of their songs, ramping up the increasingly emphatic and euphoric solos.—
David Browne,
Rolling Stone,
23 Apr. 2025
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The statistics were grim—twenty-first-century males were, relative to their forefathers and their female contemporaries, much more likely to fall behind in school, drop out of college, languish in the workforce, or die by overdose or suicide.—
Andrew Marantz,
The New Yorker,
17 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Ancestress.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ancestress. Accessed 27 May. 2025.
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