FOREMOTHER Synonyms: 31 Similar and Opposite Words

foremother

noun

Definition of foremother

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 foremother No one emerges at the end of the book as entirely good or bad (save, perhaps, for Busia, Regan’s culinary foremother). — Makana Eyre, Washington Post, 9 Jan. 2023 In a year when avant-pop stars such as Rosalía thrilled with volcanic vocals and cybernetic beats, their foremother dug in yet-stranger soil. — Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 15 Dec. 2022 Taking inspiration from her literary foremother Zora Neale Hurston, Walker centers southern Black women, who are all too often misrepresented in American culture. — Usa Today Staff, USA TODAY, 27 Sep. 2021 The Houston exhibit, conceived by White and co-curator Jill Dawsey, explores Saint Phalle’s avant-garde status and how her resistance establishes her as a foremother of such contemporary artists as Tschabalala Self, Katie Stout, and Rachel Feinstein. — Amarie Gipson, Town & Country, 4 Sep. 2021 See All Example Sentences for foremother

Recent Examples of Synonyms for foremother

Noun

During the mixing sessions, Åkerfeldt’s grandmother was hit by a car and killed.

— Sam Goldner, Pitchfork, 19 July 2026
Jaron Anderson Sandoria says Stephanie would be a grandmother now.

— Samantha Springer, NBC news, 19 July 2026

Definition of grandmother

Noun

Meanwhile, Alice, Dana’s ancestress, never becomes much more than a moral quandary: a stubborn victim who is unable to adapt.

— Julian Lucas, The New Yorker, 8 Mar. 2021
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

Definition of ancestress

Noun

Impressively, on an island of big brands, this hotel is still owned and operated by the O'Hara family, whose matriarch, Cynthia, and her husband Budge purchased the place in the mid-1950s.

— Jonnie Bayfield, Condé Nast Traveler, 19 July 2026
Instead, menopause elevates them to the respected role of matriarchs in their families.

— Helen Carefoot, Flow Space, 16 July 2026

Definition of matriarch

Noun

At some point in the mid-1850s, the river Padma suddenly carved a new path through the village of his ancestors in modern-day Bangladesh, flooding their homes and scattering them across the Indian subcontinent.

— Robert Rubsam, The Atlantic, 20 July 2026
All across the United States, federal soldiers rounded up our Native American ancestors like cattle, pushing them into prison camps, many of which later became reservations.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 20 July 2026

Definition of ancestor

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foremost

foremother

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Style

“Foremother.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/foremother. Accessed 24 Jul. 2026.

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Synonyms of foremother

noun

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