as in ancestor
a person who is several generations earlier in an individual's line of descent
our forefathers bought this farm, and our family has worked it for three generations
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Recent Examples of forefather
The series, based on the popular BBC show of the same name, is considered a forefather of Saturday Night Live and other live comedy shows.
—
Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 28 July 2025
Decades later, Margaret’s son moved his famous forefather’s skull yet again, to the Roper family vault at St. Dunstan’s Church in Canterbury.
—Meilan Solly, Smithsonian Magazine, 28 July 2025
Howard Miller Company, located in Zeeland, Mich., was founded in 1926 by Howard C. Miller, son of contract furniture legend Herman Miller, a forefather of MillerKnoll.
—Sofia Celeste, Footwear News, 11 July 2025
How long must a bloodline endure the misdeeds of its forefathers?
—George Pendle, Air Mail, 21 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for forefather
Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 28 July 2025
Decades later, Margaret’s son moved his famous forefather’s skull yet again, to the Roper family vault at St. Dunstan’s Church in Canterbury.
—Meilan Solly, Smithsonian Magazine, 28 July 2025
Howard Miller Company, located in Zeeland, Mich., was founded in 1926 by Howard C. Miller, son of contract furniture legend Herman Miller, a forefather of MillerKnoll.
—Sofia Celeste, Footwear News, 11 July 2025
How long must a bloodline endure the misdeeds of its forefathers?
—George Pendle, Air Mail, 21 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for forefather
Recent Examples of Synonyms for forefather
Noun
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Her ancestor’s analytic model discouraged self-revelation by the therapist, but Freud often meets her guests’ excavations of desire and vulnerability with her own candid recollections.—
Rebecca Mead,
New Yorker,
8 Sep. 2025
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In Rea Rasmussen's case, the process took 18 months and required building genealogical connections back to ancestors born in the 1780s.—
Adeola Adeosun,
MSNBC Newsweek,
8 Sep. 2025
Noun
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La Luz del Mundo was founded by Joaquin's grandfather, Eusebio Joaquin Gonzalez, in 1926 and was later led by Joaquin's father, Samuel Joaquin Flores.—
Luc Cohen,
USA Today,
12 Sep. 2025
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This is not your father’s or grandfather’s Atherton High School football program, and never was that more evident than Tuesday’s practice at the school.—
Rich Barak,
Louisville Courier Journal,
12 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Celebrating the assassination of a 31 year old father of two young kids is disturbing; that teachers would be among those who do so is completely unacceptable.—
Amy DeLaura,
The Washington Examiner,
12 Sep. 2025
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His father, a hard-working Russian immigrant and patriotic US bomber pilot, taught him to respect authority.—
Martine Paris,
Forbes.com,
12 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Forefather.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/forefather. Accessed 15 Sep. 2025.
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