grandam

noun

gran·​dam ˈgran-ˌdam How to pronounce grandam (audio)
-dəm
Synonyms of grandamnext
1
or grandame
ˈgran-ˌdām How to pronounce grandam (audio)
a
: grandmother
b
: an old woman
2
or granddam
ˈgran-ˌdam How to pronounce grandam (audio)
-dəm
 : a dam's or sire's dam
—used of an animal

Word History

Etymology

Middle English graundam, from Anglo-French graund dame, literally, great lady

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of grandam was in the 13th century

Rhymes for grandam

See All Rhymes for grandam

Browse Nearby Words

grandam
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Grandam.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/grandam. Accessed 26 Mar. 2025.

Copy Citation

Share

Kids Definition

grandam

noun
gran·​dam ˈgran-ˌdam How to pronounce grandam (audio)
-dəm
variants or grandame
-ˌdām How to pronounce grandam (audio)
-dəm
1
: grandmother sense 1
2
: an old woman

More from Merriam-Webster on grandam

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for grandam

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Words You Always Have to Look Up

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Top 10 Sophisticated Insults

Flower Etymologies For Your Spring Garden

More Words with Remarkable Origins

Terroir, Oenophile, & Magnum: Ten Words About Wine

8 Words for Lesser-Known Musical Instruments
See More

Popular Features

See More

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Top 10 Sophisticated Insults

Flower Etymologies For Your Spring Garden
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Word Game Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
dog-in-disguise
Rhyme Disguise Quiz Pair up words that look different but sound alike.
See All