foremother

noun

Definition of foremothernext
as in grandmother

Synonyms & Similar Words

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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 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 Ford borrows from her literary foremother Zora Neale Hurston — especially Hurston’s juxtaposition of happiness to intimacy with the sun. — Darryl Robertson, USA TODAY, 31 May 2021 See All Example Sentences for foremother
Recent Examples of Synonyms for foremother
  1. grandmother
  2. ancestress
  3. matriarch
  4. grandfather
  5. forefather
  6. forebear
  7. ancestor
  8. progenitor
Noun
  • Shabtai shows us a tattoo on his arm that’s a reminder of his grandmother and her roots.
    — Andy Wang, Forbes, 10 Mar. 2025
  • Erick traces his love for cooking back to his grandmother and his parents.
    — Sunny Hubler, Charlotte Observer, 10 Mar. 2025
Definition of grandmother
Noun
  • The intersection of these two facts does convince me that William's genealogical ancestress, Eliza Kewark, did have South Asian ancestry (not totally surprising even in notionally ethnically distinct groups like Armenians or Parsis who have been long resident in India).
    — Razib Khan, Discover Magazine, 14 June 2013
  • Instead of being a reticulated mesh the genealogy of mtDNA is a clean and inverted elegant tree leading back to a common ancestress.
    — Razib Khan, Discover Magazine, 17 Nov. 2010
Definition of ancestress
Noun
  • The matriarch of the Dutton family, who writes letters to Spencer like diary entries, is the majestic Helen Mirren as Cara Dutton with a gruff Harrison Ford impeccably playing her loving husband, Jacob Dutton.
    — Rachel Elspeth Gross, Forbes, 9 Mar. 2025
  • The true-life sports biopic unleashes Leo as Alice, the loud, over-the-top matriarch of a large Boston family and manager mom to Micky Ward, a championship boxing contender trained by his drug-addict pugilist half-brother Dicky.
    — Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, 25 Feb. 2025
Definition of matriarch
Noun
  • This recipe is familiar yet revolutionary at the same time, just like your grandfather's stories.
    — Mary Alice Russell, Southern Living, 14 Mar. 2025
  • Pulte, whose grandfather founded the nation’s third-largest homebuilder, PulteGroup, said that privatizing the two companies is not the Trump administration’s top priority this time around.
    — Samantha Delouya, CNN, 13 Mar. 2025
Definition of grandfather
Noun
  • Rise up like the American forefathers did a few hundred years ago.
    — Joe Hudicka, Forbes, 20 Feb. 2025
  • Trapping has evolved quite a bit since our forefathers first set out for beaver in the 1800s.
    — Skye Goode, Outdoor Life, 27 Feb. 2025
Definition of forefather
Noun
  • He is considered by many to be a forebear of today’s right-wing leaders such as Donald Trump.
    — Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 7 Jan. 2025
  • The finding is a notable puzzle piece that could help shed light on the earliest forebears of mammals, experts said.
    — Mindy Weisberger, CNN, 19 Dec. 2024
Definition of forebear
Noun
  • The Cajuns of south Louisiana trace their ancestors to the French Acadians exiled from Nova Scotia around 1755.
    — Kristy Christiansen, Southern Living, 6 Mar. 2025
  • Our ancestors crossed a vast ocean, strode into the unknown wilderness, and carved their fortunes from the rock and soil of a perilous and very dangerous frontier.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 5 Mar. 2025
Definition of ancestor
Noun
  • The two Metroidvania progenitors — 1986’s Metroid and 1987’s Castlevania II: Simon’s Quest — cultivated a sense of geographical bewilderment by letting players unfurl the secrets of their arcane worlds in any direction along the X and Y axes.
    — Lewis Gordon, New York Times, 20 Feb. 2025
  • That series’ progenitor, Twin Peaks (1990-92) — also co-written with Frost — was the first network series to be organized around one character’s death and a community’s response to it.
    — Matt Zoller Seitz, Vulture, 16 Jan. 2025
Definition of progenitor

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Cite this Entry

“Foremother.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/foremother. Accessed 21 Mar. 2025.

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