an·ces·tor
Audio Help [an-ses-ter or, especially Brit., -suh-ster] Pronunciation Key
Audio Help [an-ses-ter or, especially Brit., -suh-ster] Pronunciation Key –noun
| 1. | a person from whom one is descended; forebear; progenitor. |
| 2. | Biology. the actual or hypothetical form or stock from which an organism has developed or descended. |
| 3. | an object, idea, style, or occurrence serving as a prototype, forerunner, or inspiration to a later one: The balloon is an ancestor of the modern dirigible. |
| 4. | a person who serves as an influence or model for another; one from whom mental, artistic, spiritual, etc., descent is claimed: a philosophical ancestor. |
| 5. | Law. a person from whom an heir derives an inheritance. |
| Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006. |
ancestor
To learn more about ancestor visit Britannica.com
| © 2008 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. |
| an·ces·tor
Audio Help (ān'sěs'tər) Pronunciation Key
n.
[Middle English auncestre, from Old French, from Latin antecessor, predecessor, from antecessus, past participle of antecēdere, to precede : ante-, ante- + cēdere, to go; see ked- in Indo-European roots.] Synonyms: These nouns denote a person from whom one is descended: ancestors who were farmers; land once owned by his forebears; laws handed down from our forefathers; our progenitors' wisdom. |
| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
ancestor
1297, from O.Fr. ancestre, from L.L. antecessor "predecessor," lit. "foregoer," agent noun from L. antecess-, stem of antecedere "precede," agent noun from ante- "before" (see ante) + cedere "to go" (see cede).
| Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper |
| ancestor | |
noun | |
| someone from whom you are descended (but usually more remote than a grandparent) [ant: descendant] |
| WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University. |
ancestor [ˈӕnsistə, (American) -ses-] noun — feminine ˈancestress
a person who was a member of one's family a long time ago and from whom one is descended
See also: ancestry
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| Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary, © 2000-2006 K Dictionaries Ltd. |
Ancestor
An"ces*tor\, n. [OE. ancestre, auncestre, also ancessour; the first forms fr. OF. ancestre, F. anc[^e]tre, fr. the L. nom. antessor one who goes before; the last form fr. OF. ancessor, fr. L. acc. antecessorem, fr. antecedere to go before; ante before + cedere to go. See Cede, and cf. Antecessor.]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 fore father. 2. (Biol.) An earlier type; a progenitor; as, this fossil animal is regarded as the ancestor of the horse. 3. (Law) One from whom an estate has descended; -- the correlative of heir.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
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