ancestor

noun (an ancestor, ancestors)

«ancestor» in the English dictionary: everyday and in Jewish tradition — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

Everyday

An ancestor is a person in your family who lived long ago, before your grandparents, like a great-great-grandparent. tree →
An ancestor of an animal or plant is an older kind from which it developed: the wolf is an ancestor of the dog. tree →
An ancestor of a machine or idea is an earlier form of it. tree →

In the lessons

In history lessons pupils make family trees and learn where their ancestors came from (Ireland, Italy, China, Africa…). In science, ancestors explain evolution: birds have dinosaur ancestors. Many cultures honour ancestors, such as Māori whakapapa or Aboriginal Australian connections to Country. Phrases: «our ancestors», «a common ancestor», «ancestor of».

Examples

My ancestors came from Ireland on a ship. tree →
We made a family tree to find our ancestors. tree →
The wolf is the ancestor of the dog. tree →
Birds have dinosaur ancestors. tree →
Our ancestors hunted and gathered their food. tree →
Grandma has a photo of an ancestor from 1890. tree →
The horse's ancestor was as small as a fox. tree →
Many cultures tell stories about their ancestors. tree →
Consider what you owe to yourself, and to the blood of your ancestors." tree →

Note

Countable: an ancestor. Opposite: descendant (people who come after you). Adjective: ancestral (an ancestral home). Myth: humans did not come from today's monkeys; humans and apes share a common ancestor.

In Jewish tradition

In the Torah it means the forefathers of Israel, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, with whom God made the covenant.

Interpretation. Tradition says God remembers the covenant with the patriarchs and so keeps faith with their children, a idea called the merit of the fathers.

Examples

But I will for their sakes remember the covenant of their ancestors, whom I brought forth out of the land of Egypt in the sight of the nations, that I might be their God: I am the LORD. (Torah LEV.26.45, JPS 1917) tree →

Note

On Mova

Trees and pragmatics of «ancestor» in the school dictionary: every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
«ancestor» in the school dictionary on Mova free.
Trees and pragmatics of «ancestor» in the Judaism dictionary: every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
«ancestor» in the Judaism dictionary on Mova free.

This page in Markdown → https://md.dictionary.elamur.ai/free/en/english/ancestor/