as in lineage
the line of ancestors from whom a person is descended
a Cambodian immigrant who can trace her Khmer ancestry as far back as the 16th century
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of ancestry
She was born and raised in Hawaii and is of Vietnamese descent on her mother’s side, as well as having Polish and Irish ancestry on her father’s side, who is American.
—
Rosy Cordero, Deadline, 22 Jan. 2026
What unites these animals is not shared ancestry, but shared selective pressure.
—Scott Travers, Forbes.com, 18 Jan. 2026
Meiklejohn believes the authors could use other methodologies like the FORensic Capture Enrichment panel, designed to isolate human DNA for identifying extended kinship, ancestry and phenotype analysis.
—Ashley Strickland, CNN Money, 16 Jan. 2026
Around 50 people of African ancestry have migrated to Benin from countries including the US under a citizenship program endorsed by Hollywood filmmaker Spike Lee.
—Preeti Jha, semafor.com, 16 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for ancestry
Rosy Cordero, Deadline, 22 Jan. 2026
What unites these animals is not shared ancestry, but shared selective pressure.
—Scott Travers, Forbes.com, 18 Jan. 2026
Meiklejohn believes the authors could use other methodologies like the FORensic Capture Enrichment panel, designed to isolate human DNA for identifying extended kinship, ancestry and phenotype analysis.
—Ashley Strickland, CNN Money, 16 Jan. 2026
Around 50 people of African ancestry have migrated to Benin from countries including the US under a citizenship program endorsed by Hollywood filmmaker Spike Lee.
—Preeti Jha, semafor.com, 16 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for ancestry
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ancestry
Noun
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The lineage continues through efforts to measure intelligence, such as the Binet-Simon test that generated an IQ score, through to Alan Turing’s creation of early computer systems to create beyond-human intelligence.—
David Bloom,
Forbes.com,
29 Jan. 2026
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Ninety million years after our lineages split, humans are beginning to listen to whales in a new way.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
29 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Johnnie Ray Salisbury, now 71, was linked to the case by forensic genealogy — a science that uses DNA from a family tree to narrow down a suspect.—
Meredith Colias-Pete,
Chicago Tribune,
24 Jan. 2026
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The idea behind genetic genealogy is to take DNA from a crime scene and enter it into a publicly accessible genealogy DNA database in hopes of finding a close enough match to relatives of the unknown perpetrator.—
Teri Figueroa,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
23 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Maybe another working definition of folklore is a narrative with relatively wide acceptance but no clear origin.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
28 Jan. 2026
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Yet the primary data required for compliance—fiber origin, material composition, chemical inputs—are generated and held upstream by suppliers and processors.—
Alexandra Harrell,
Sourcing Journal,
28 Jan. 2026
Noun
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With its record-setting past, unmatched waterfrontage, and architectural pedigree, the Mokulua Estate now stands poised to test the upper limits of O‘ahu’s luxury real estate market once again.—
Abby Montanez,
Robb Report,
22 Jan. 2026
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With multiple offers in free agency, Kyle Tucker was ultimately swayed by the Los Angeles Dodgers’ championship pedigree.—
Beth Harris,
Chicago Tribune,
22 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Eger watched her parents taken away to the gas chambers where more than a million people, primarily of Jewish descent, were murdered.—
Linda Mcintosh,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
26 Jan. 2026
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As jealousy, greed, and paranoia take hold, the group is torn apart by their inner demons, threatening to turn their angelic encounter into a descent into hell.—
Matt Grobar,
Deadline,
26 Jan. 2026
Noun
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In making that choice, families often find that our public schools are the perfect place for their child to thrive.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
28 Jan. 2026
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The agency investigated 14,938 threat concerns toward members of Congress, their staff, their families, and the Capitol grounds in 2025.—
Molly Parks,
The Washington Examiner,
28 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Mountain lions need wide ranges to hunt, usually for deer, and for males to find unrelated females for breeding.—
Steve Scauzillo,
Daily News,
28 Jan. 2026
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In 2019, Canada passed the Ending the Captivity of Whales and Dolphins Act, effectively ending the trade, possession, capture and breeding of whales, dolphins and porpoises for entertainment.—
Michelle Del Rey,
USA Today,
27 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Ancestry.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ancestry. Accessed 30 Jan. 2026.
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