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 Philadelphia Art Museum, the National Constitution Center, the Museum of the American Revolution, and smaller outfits like Eastern State Penitentiary and Historic Germantown will, as expected, reimagine the history of our republic in an homage to the forefathers’ ingenuity.
—
Tribune News Service, Baltimore Sun, 5 Jan. 2026
My forefathers helped form the Soviet identity and its rituals, even before there was a country to promote them.
—Andrew Fedorov, The Atlantic, 31 Dec. 2025
But the Nelsons — Lukas and his dad, the outlaw country forefather Willie — are no ordinary family.
—Rachel Desantis, PEOPLE, 18 Dec. 2025
Markus — whose great-great-great-grandfather invented the nutcracker doll — makes nutcrackers for a living, as did each of his forefathers who descended from the great inventor.
—Elaina Patton, IndieWire, 15 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for forefather
Tribune News Service, Baltimore Sun, 5 Jan. 2026
My forefathers helped form the Soviet identity and its rituals, even before there was a country to promote them.
—Andrew Fedorov, The Atlantic, 31 Dec. 2025
But the Nelsons — Lukas and his dad, the outlaw country forefather Willie — are no ordinary family.
—Rachel Desantis, PEOPLE, 18 Dec. 2025
Markus — whose great-great-great-grandfather invented the nutcracker doll — makes nutcrackers for a living, as did each of his forefathers who descended from the great inventor.
—Elaina Patton, IndieWire, 15 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for forefather
Recent Examples of Synonyms for forefather
Noun
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The tradition of dressing up for the race has been in place since Potts-Joseph’s ancestors were running sleds.—
Christian Allaire,
Vogue,
10 Mar. 2026
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Next, the team wants to use digital reconstruction methods to correct deformation on other parts of the skull, such as the braincase, to reveal insights about the brain size of Little Foot — and potentially unlock clues about the cognitive abilities of our early human ancestors.—
Ashley Strickland,
CNN Money,
7 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Set almost entirely within the confines of an apartment and its balcony, the story unfolds over the course of a few days and centers on an unexpected duel between a grandfather and his grandson.—
Melanie Goodfellow,
Deadline,
12 Mar. 2026
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The new Ozzy — named after her paternal grandfather, the former Black Sabbath frontman who died of a heart attack last July — clocked in a week ago at 7 pounds, 12 ounces, and 19 inches long, according to the photo.—
Assistant Editor,
Los Angeles Times,
12 Mar. 2026
Noun
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An Israeli intelligence assessment, meanwhile, found Iran's new supreme leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, was wounded at the start of the war -- on the day when his father and predecessor, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was killed in an Israeli airstrike.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
12 Mar. 2026
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In Chicago, Martinez’s father picked up minimum-wage jobs.—
Ruby Cramer,
New Yorker,
12 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Forefather.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/forefather. Accessed 17 Mar. 2026.
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