as in ancestor
a person who is several generations earlier in an individual's line of descent
the progenitors of today's Maya once ruled a mighty empire that stretched across much of Central America
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Recent Examples of progenitor
From the mid-1990s to the mid-2000s, professional photographer Steven Sebring followed the poet-singer-punk progenitor across time and space, then rearranged the pieces into an impressionistic collage.
—
Meredith Blake, Los Angeles Times, 26 Dec. 2024
More often than not, the internet has been the progenitor of movements, changes, and trends in the real, physical world.
—Makena Kelly, WIRED, 19 Dec. 2024
One of the oldest progenitors of the style, the eatery was founded by Patsy Lancieri in 1933, and later begat other New York icons like Grimaldi’s and helped spawn a New York pizza renaissance that’s still very much alive.
—Rod Stafford Hagwood, Sun Sentinel, 8 Nov. 2024
This is Cliven, the 77-year-old progenitor of the resistance, father of seven sons and seven daughters, grandfather of 74, great-grandfather of 21.
—Matt Thompson, SPIN, 5 Nov. 2024
See All Example Sentences for progenitor
Meredith Blake, Los Angeles Times, 26 Dec. 2024
More often than not, the internet has been the progenitor of movements, changes, and trends in the real, physical world.
—Makena Kelly, WIRED, 19 Dec. 2024
One of the oldest progenitors of the style, the eatery was founded by Patsy Lancieri in 1933, and later begat other New York icons like Grimaldi’s and helped spawn a New York pizza renaissance that’s still very much alive.
—Rod Stafford Hagwood, Sun Sentinel, 8 Nov. 2024
This is Cliven, the 77-year-old progenitor of the resistance, father of seven sons and seven daughters, grandfather of 74, great-grandfather of 21.
—Matt Thompson, SPIN, 5 Nov. 2024
See All Example Sentences for progenitor
Recent Examples of Synonyms for progenitor
Noun
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Then the fire last month destroyed nearly everything inside the house: the handwritten letters from Ms. Edmiston’s father, who was once the mayor of Beverly Hills; a tin menorah that her ancestors brought from Russia and Poland; and, of course, nearly all the cookie jars.—
Corina Knoll,
New York Times,
22 Feb. 2025
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Because of this, many scientists believed that early and classic Neanderthals had a lower genetic diversity than their pre-Neanderthal ancestors.—
Discover Magazine,
Discover Magazine,
21 Feb. 2025
Noun
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Kenney’s achievement came after his grandfather Tim Reid died at the age of 61 earlier this month.—
Dave Melton,
Chicago Tribune,
18 Feb. 2025
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Over breakfast on the day after the announcement was made, Venetia’s grandfather was reading the account of the new planet aloud from the paper and the young girl straightaway recommended the name Pluto, the ruler of the underworld.—
Jeffrey Kluger,
TIME,
18 Feb. 2025
Noun
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At least four of the detainees whose families spoke with the Herald are fathers to children 5 years old or younger.—
Claire Healy,
Miami Herald,
26 Feb. 2025
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Yarden Bibas, Shiri’s husband and the father of the two redheaded boys, was abducted separately during the attack, which set off Israel’s 15-month war in Gaza that killed tens of thousands of Palestinians and left much of the enclave in ruins.—
Isabel Kershner,
New York Times,
26 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Progenitor.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/progenitor. Accessed 1 Mar. 2025.
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