forefather
English
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forefather
- /ˈfɔːˌfɑːðə/ UK
- /ˈfɔɹˌfɑːðɚ/ US
Where it comes from
From Middle English forefader, forfader, vorvader, from Old English forefæder (“forefather”), but possibly also merged with Old Norse forfaðir. Equivalent to fore- + father. Compare Dutch voorvader (“forefather”), German Vorvater, Vorfahr (“forefather”), Danish forfader (“forefather”), Swedish förfader (“forefather”).
noun forefathers
- An ancestor. His forefathers had been, as a rule, professional men—physicians and lawyers; his grandfather died under the walls of Chapultepec Castle while twisting a tourniquet for a cursing dragoon; an uncle remained indefinitely at Malvern Hill; an only brother at Montauk Point having sickened in the trenches
- A cultural ancestor; one who originated an idea or tradition.
Translations
Every language
noun cultural ancestor
| 中文 | 先驅 /先驱 xiānqū |
|---|
noun ancestor
| Español | ancestro, antepasado, ascendiente, predecesor |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | 前任者 zenninsha |
| 中文 | 祖先 zǔxiān, 先人 xiānrén |
| हिन्दी | पूर्वज pūrvaj |
| Português | antepassado |
| Français | aïeul, ancêtre |
| Deutsch | Vorfahre |
| Italiano | avo, ascendente, antenato, progenitore |
| Русский | пре́док prédok, прароди́тель prarodítelʹ, пра́щур práščur, праоте́ц praotéc |
Talk about this word "forefather." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/forefather. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. forefather. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/forefather "forefather." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/forefather.Cite this
@misc{forefather_2026,
title = {forefather},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/forefather},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
