0%

ancestor

an·ces·tor
A a

Transcription

    • US Pronunciation
    • US IPA
    • UK Pronunciation
    • UK IPA
    • [an-ses-ter or, esp. British, -suh-ster]
    • /ˈæn sɛs tər or, esp. British, -sə stər/
    • /ˈæn.ses.tər/
    • US Pronunciation
    • US IPA
    • [an-ses-ter or, esp. British, -suh-ster]
    • /ˈæn sɛs tər or, esp. British, -sə stər/

Definitions of ancestor word

  • countable noun ancestor Your ancestors are the people from whom you are descended. 3
  • countable noun ancestor An ancestor of something modern is an earlier thing from which it developed. 3
  • noun ancestor a person from whom another is directly descended, esp someone more distant than a grandparent; forefather 3
  • noun ancestor an early type of animal or plant from which a later, usually dissimilar, type has evolved 3
  • noun ancestor a person or thing regarded as a forerunner of a later person or thing 3
  • noun ancestor any person from whom one is descended, esp. one earlier in a family line than a grandparent; forefather; forebear 3

Information block about the term

Origin of ancestor

First appearance:

before 1250
One of the 11% oldest English words
1250-1300; Middle English ancestre < Old French (with t developed between s and r) < Latin antecessor antecessor

Historical Comparancy

Parts of speech for Ancestor

noun
adjective
verb
adverb
pronoun
preposition
conjunction
determiner
exclamation

ancestor popularity

A common word. It’s meaning is known to most children of preschool age. About 92% of English native speakers know the meaning and use the word.
Most Europeans know this English word. The frequency of it’s usage is somewhere between "mom" and "screwdriver".

ancestor usage trend in Literature

This diagram is provided by Google Ngram Viewer

Synonyms for ancestor

noun ancestor

  • forebear — Usually, forebears. ancestors; forefathers.
  • founder — a person who founds or casts metal, glass, etc.
  • forefather — an ancestor.
  • antecedent — An antecedent of something happened or existed before it and was similar to it in some way.
  • ascendant — proceeding upwards; rising

Antonyms for ancestor

noun ancestor

  • descendant — Someone's descendants are the people in later generations who are related to them.
  • successor — a person or thing that succeeds or follows.

Top questions with ancestor

  • what does ancestor mean?
  • what is ancestor worship?
  • what is the probable evolutionary ancestor of land plants?
  • what is ancestor veneration?
  • which instrument is the ancestor of the modern trombone?
  • what is a common ancestor?
  • what is an ancestor?
  • which instrument is an ancestor of the modern oboe?
  • which instrument is an ancestor of the modern tuba?
  • what is ancestor?
  • who is my ancestor?
  • what is the evolutionary ancestor to the fungi?
  • what is a direct ancestor?
  • what is the ancestor of dogs?
  • what is the definition of ancestor?

See also

Matching words

Was this page helpful?
Yes No
Thank you for your feedback! Tell your friends about this page
Tell us why?