granddaddy

noun

grand·​dad·​dy ˈgran-ˌda-dē 

variants or less commonly grandaddy

1

: grandfather sense 1a

2

: one that is the first, earliest, or most venerable of its kind

Synonyms

• ancestor
• antecedent
• archetype
• daddy
• foregoer
• forerunner
• precursor
• predecessor
• prototype

Examples of granddaddy in a Sentence

the granddaddy of all English mystery novels

Recent Examples on the Web

The granddaddy of all medical dramas ran from 1994 to 2009, for 15 old-school, network-length seasons on NBC. —Kathryn Vanarendonk, Vulture, 9 Jan. 2025

Week 4: No. 15 Tennessee at No. 16 Oklahoma (Sept. 21) Sports columnists love a narrative game, and this is the granddaddy of narrative games. —Blake Toppmeyer, The Tennessean, 20 Dec. 2024

This show has become the granddaddy of tech shows and is the largest in the U.S. —Tim Bajarin, Forbes, 17 Dec. 2024

As the granddaddy of partnerships with limited liability, the LP, the original limited partnership, offered taxpayers the strongest claim for invoking the loophole. —Paul Kiel, ProPublica, 11 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1648, in the meaning defined at sense 1