as in ancestor
a person who is several generations earlier in an individual's line of descent
villagers who still practice many of the customs of their forebearers
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Recent Examples of forebearer
After leaving Alabama, Avinger served a year in the U.S. Army, then signed for a season with the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Western Interprovincial Football Union, one of the forebearers of the Canadian Football League.
—
Mark Inabinett | Minabinett@al.com, al, 17 Apr. 2023
Like its classic-rock forebearer Desert Trip, the concert will bring two acts per night to Indio’s Empire Polo Club, on the weekend of Oct. 6-8.
—August Brown, Los Angeles Times, 30 Mar. 2023
Mike Brown said the digital driver license is the forebearer of discriminating against the unvaccinated.
—Bryan Schott, The Salt Lake Tribune, 8 Feb. 2022
If successful, The Mayflower Autonomous Ship, named in honor of its famous nautical forebearer and known as MAS for short, will be the first such trans-Atlantic voyage by an autonomous vessel.
—Jeremy Kahn, Fortune, 27 Nov. 2021
Our generation inherited a healthy ocean from our forebearers.
—CNN, 24 Sep. 2019
Many of our forebearers, including my great-grandfather, were undocumented immigrants, no different from Central American migrants today.
—Aaron Freedman, The New Republic, 9 Aug. 2019
Mark Inabinett | Minabinett@al.com, al, 17 Apr. 2023
Like its classic-rock forebearer Desert Trip, the concert will bring two acts per night to Indio’s Empire Polo Club, on the weekend of Oct. 6-8.
—August Brown, Los Angeles Times, 30 Mar. 2023
Mike Brown said the digital driver license is the forebearer of discriminating against the unvaccinated.
—Bryan Schott, The Salt Lake Tribune, 8 Feb. 2022
If successful, The Mayflower Autonomous Ship, named in honor of its famous nautical forebearer and known as MAS for short, will be the first such trans-Atlantic voyage by an autonomous vessel.
—Jeremy Kahn, Fortune, 27 Nov. 2021
Our generation inherited a healthy ocean from our forebearers.
—CNN, 24 Sep. 2019
Many of our forebearers, including my great-grandfather, were undocumented immigrants, no different from Central American migrants today.
—Aaron Freedman, The New Republic, 9 Aug. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for forebearer
Noun
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In October 2024, the lab firm used genealogical mapping, in which unidentified DNA is traced to relatives and ancestors to produce a more precise genetic profile and possible identity, to point to Contreras, according to the affidavit.—
Robert Salonga,
Mercury News,
7 Jan. 2026
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Over ten million years ago, long before the human species existed, our hominid ancestors adapted to metabolize alcohol.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
7 Jan. 2026
Noun
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The gift is fitting, not just because Farley runs Ford, but his maternal grandfather, Emmet Tracy, was an early Ford employee who built Model T's.—
Jamie L. LaReau,
USA Today,
10 Jan. 2026
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In 1993, Tom and his wife, Cathy, welcomed a son, making Knotts a grandfather for the first time.—
Katie Mannion,
PEOPLE,
10 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Boley's father, Jameson Kyle Boley, 40, of Jasper, Alabama, has been charged with felony chemical endangerment of a child and unlawful manufacture of a destructive device, according to Walker County District Court records obtained by Fox News Digital.—
Sophia Compton,
FOXNews.com,
10 Jan. 2026
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And the father and son eventually fell out.—
Angela Andaloro,
PEOPLE,
10 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Forebearer.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/forebearer. Accessed 14 Jan. 2026.
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