Ancestor

Pronunciation

• US IPA: /ˈæn.sÉ›s.tÉš/, /ˈæn.sÉ›s.toɹ/

Alternative forms

• ancestour obsolete
• auncestor obsolete
• auncestour obsolete

Origin

Middle English ancestre, auncestre, ancessour; the first forms from Old French ancestre (modern French ancêtre), from the Latin nominative antecessor one who goes before; the last form from Old French ancessor, from Latin accusative antecessorem, from antecedo ("to go before"); ante ("before") + cedo ("to go"). See cede, and compare with antecessor.

Full definition of ancestor

Noun

1. One from whom a person is descended, whether on the father's or mother's side, at any distance of time; a progenitor; a forefather.
• 2013-07-20, Old soldiers?, Whether modern, industrial man is less or more warlike than his hunter-gatherer ancestors is impossible to determine. The machine gun is so much more lethal than the bow and arrow that comparisons are meaningless.
2. An earlier type; a progenitor
   This fossil animal is regarded as the ancestor of the horse.
3. (legal) One from whom an estate has descended;—the correlative of heir.
4. (figuratively) One who had the same role or function in former times.
• 2011, October 1, Saj Chowdhury, Wolverhampton 1-2 Newcastle, The Magpies are unbeaten and enjoying their best run since 1994, although few would have thought the class of 2011 would come close to emulating their ancestors.

Usage notes

There is a rare feminine form ancestress

Derived terms

• cenancestor

Antonyms

• descendant

Anagrams

• enactors