ancestress

noun

Definition of ancestressnext
as in grandmother

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of ancestress 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 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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ancestress
  1. grandmother
  2. matriarch
  3. ancestor
  4. progenitor
  5. foremother
  6. forebear
Noun
  • The floral design has all the charm of your grandmother’s upholstered furniture, and it’s finished with riveted trim and rolled armrests perfect for any traditional space.
    — Caley Sturgill, Southern Living, 10 Aug. 2026
  • Some of the most valuable items could be hiding in your own home—or more specifically, under your grandmother’s roof.
    — Shagun Khare, Martha Stewart, 9 Aug. 2026
Definition of grandmother
Noun
  • Developers also pointed to the dedication of a 60-acre park along the south side of the Boise River, named Margaret Aldape Park, after the matriarch of the Aldape family who had homesteaded the land for more than a century.
    — Rose Evans August 9, Idaho Statesman, 9 Aug. 2026
  • Thaha Ibrahim, a Muslim, forged a profound connection with the late Sarah Cohen, one of the neighborhood's Jewish matriarchs.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of matriarch
Noun
  • Those with the funds to file a court case, essentially suing the Italian state for sexism against their female ancestors, are likely to win, but legal action is lengthy and costly.
    — Julia Buckley, CNN Money, 4 Aug. 2026
  • Therefore, this benefit must reach everyone, not only those whose ancestors match the reference sets from past decades.
    — William A. Haseltine, Forbes.com, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of ancestor
Noun
  • So perhaps a certain signaling molecule preferentially accumulates more on one side of a neural progenitor cell than the other.
    — Quanta Magazine, Quanta Magazine, 13 July 2026
  • Yet that same year, Brynjolfsson got access to GPT-3, a progenitor of ChatGPT.
    — Annie Lowrey, The Atlantic, 29 June 2026
Definition of progenitor
Noun
  • 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
  • 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
Definition of foremother
Noun
  • Some of his forebears emigrated before the genocide; others barely got out.
    — Sarah Larson, New Yorker, 19 July 2026
  • Over the years, a number of prominent mathematicians tried to prove this guess of their forebears.
    — Joseph Howlett, Scientific American, 14 July 2026
Definition of forebear

Browse Nearby Words

ancestral
ancestress
ancestresses
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Cite this Entry

“Ancestress.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ancestress. Accessed 10 Aug. 2026.

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