1
as in grandfathers
a person who is several generations earlier in an individual's line of descent
Bridie's Irish ancestors immigrated to the United States in the 19th century during the Great Potato Famine
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in forerunners
something belonging to an earlier time from which something else was later developed
pinball machines—the ancestors of today's video games—go back to the 19th century
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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 ancestors
This deep dive into her ancestors, reviving them, was inspired by a challenge from another artist.
—
Rachel Elspeth Gross, Forbes, 2 Jan. 2025
The ability to operate on ten bits of information per second has been enough for our ancestors to survive.
—Shi En Kim, Smithsonian Magazine, 31 Dec. 2024
During the Roman festival of Saturnalia, ancestors of today’s Italians drank and indulged and turned the social order upside down.
—Jennie Rothenberg Gritz, Smithsonian Magazine, 31 Dec. 2024
Our modern-day house cats are descended from ancestors who lived in the desert, so enjoying the texture of sand may be a way to reconnect with their roots.
—George Monastiriakos, Newsweek, 30 Dec. 2024
Although the Utes’ nomadic ancestors traditionally hunted and gathered, their descendants on the Ute Mountain Ute Reservation have made a name for themselves in the agriculture industry.
—Megan Ulu-Lani Boyanton, The Denver Post, 30 Dec. 2024
Everybody in this room, every protein that makes our lives possible, every one of our ancestors and everything else in the living world that has ever been, fits into that one drop of water.
—John Werner, Forbes, 28 Dec. 2024
What may surprise you, though, is how well our most ancient ancestors ate.
—John Mariani, Forbes, 27 Dec. 2024
While modern humans and their Homo erectus ancestors, dating back around 2 million years, were adept at endurance running, earlier hominins like Australopithecus afarensis were still transitioning.
—Srishti Gupta, Interesting Engineering, 27 Dec. 2024
Rachel Elspeth Gross, Forbes, 2 Jan. 2025
The ability to operate on ten bits of information per second has been enough for our ancestors to survive.
—Shi En Kim, Smithsonian Magazine, 31 Dec. 2024
During the Roman festival of Saturnalia, ancestors of today’s Italians drank and indulged and turned the social order upside down.
—Jennie Rothenberg Gritz, Smithsonian Magazine, 31 Dec. 2024
Our modern-day house cats are descended from ancestors who lived in the desert, so enjoying the texture of sand may be a way to reconnect with their roots.
—George Monastiriakos, Newsweek, 30 Dec. 2024
Although the Utes’ nomadic ancestors traditionally hunted and gathered, their descendants on the Ute Mountain Ute Reservation have made a name for themselves in the agriculture industry.
—Megan Ulu-Lani Boyanton, The Denver Post, 30 Dec. 2024
Everybody in this room, every protein that makes our lives possible, every one of our ancestors and everything else in the living world that has ever been, fits into that one drop of water.
—John Werner, Forbes, 28 Dec. 2024
What may surprise you, though, is how well our most ancient ancestors ate.
—John Mariani, Forbes, 27 Dec. 2024
While modern humans and their Homo erectus ancestors, dating back around 2 million years, were adept at endurance running, earlier hominins like Australopithecus afarensis were still transitioning.
—Srishti Gupta, Interesting Engineering, 27 Dec. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Ancestors.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ancestors. Accessed 15 Mar. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share