grandmother

noun

Definition of grandmothernext
as in matriarch
the mother of your father or mother

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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 grandmother The chair belonged to her grandmother Marie and was reupholstered by Morgan’s sister Alida, an artist and landscape designer. — Wendy Goodman, Curbed, 22 Aug. 2026 The mysterious death of a missing New York City grandmother whose body was found in a drainage ditch outside a Las Vegas airport has left her family with more questions than answers, heartbroken relatives said Saturday. — Rebecca White, New York Daily News, 22 Aug. 2026 The next day, police were called to a local hospital after the girl told her grandmother she had been assaulted. — Liza Esquibias, USA Today, 21 Aug. 2026 Becker, who is studying to be a dental hygienist, is a former Miss Kansas Teen USA and fourth-generation pageant competitor, following in the high heels of her great-grandmother, grandmother and mom. — Lisa Gutierrez, Kansas City Star, 21 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for grandmother
Recent Examples of Synonyms for grandmother
  1. matriarch
  2. ancestress
  3. ancestor
  4. foremother
Noun
  • Take Kyle Richards, the patron matriarch of Beverly Hills for 15 seasons and counting.
    — Shamira Ibrahim, Vulture, 24 Aug. 2026
  • The groundbreaking, at the park named for the Harris family matriarch, has been a long time coming.
    — Idaho Statesman, Idaho Statesman, 19 Aug. 2026
Definition of matriarch
Noun
  • 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
  • His own mother, aged ninety, who remembered her aunt, had been able to share stories of their ancestress with the grandchildren who’d had no idea, before now, what their background might be.
    — Susan Choi, Harper's magazine, 6 Jan. 2020
Definition of ancestress
Noun
  • Essay Get the Lead Out Alex Manley Our ancestors were born to die by predators.
    — Naomi Skwarna, hazlitt.net, 25 Aug. 2026
  • For the last decade, genealogical consultant Grant Din has helped Asian Americans find information about their ancestors, many of whom passed through San Francisco’s Angel Island Immigration Station in the 1900s.
    — Stephanie Lam, Mercury News, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of ancestor
Noun
  • Through our hair and its many rituals, remain the herbalism of our foremothers in the new world, passing down their ingenuity of homemade balms, creams, and oils for hair growth.
    — Eshe Ukweli, refinery29.com, 7 June 2023
  • In fact, precursors to modern bleaching processes didn’t come on the scene until the turn of the 20th century, leaving our foremothers and forefathers plenty of time to get creative with their blonde pursuits.
    — AJ Willingham, CNN, 28 May 2023
Definition of foremother

Browse Nearby Words

grandly
grandmother
grandmothers
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Cite this Entry

“Grandmother.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/grandmother. Accessed 26 Aug. 2026.

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