variants
also grandaddy
as in ancestor
something belonging to an earlier time from which something else was later developed
the granddaddy of all English mystery novels
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of granddaddy
The Greatest @Home Videos, of course, is an offshoot from the granddaddy of the clips genre, America’s Funniest Home Videos, which has been a staple on ABC for the last 25 years.
—
Marc Berman, Forbes, 23 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
Also part of this collection is hats, jackets and socks all paying homage to the granddaddy of American guitars.
—Ron Hart, SPIN, 29 Nov. 2024
In October 1974, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre birthed Leatherface, arguably the granddaddy of all celluloid slashers, and radically altered the landscape of horror cinema forevermore.
—Declan Gallagher, EW.com, 16 Oct. 2024
See All Example Sentences for granddaddy
Marc Berman, Forbes, 23 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
Also part of this collection is hats, jackets and socks all paying homage to the granddaddy of American guitars.
—Ron Hart, SPIN, 29 Nov. 2024
In October 1974, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre birthed Leatherface, arguably the granddaddy of all celluloid slashers, and radically altered the landscape of horror cinema forevermore.
—Declan Gallagher, EW.com, 16 Oct. 2024
See All Example Sentences for granddaddy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for granddaddy
Noun
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Florentine society had changed a good deal since the days of their illustrious ancestor; noble blood had in fact become something of a liability.—
The Editors,
JSTOR Daily,
29 May 2025
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One of these two lineages is the ancestor of the present-day strains, while the other strain re-emerged over centuries in Europe and went extinct by the early 19th century.—
Laura Baisas,
Popular Science,
29 May 2025
Noun
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Military training was also a non-starter, since the U.S. Army Air Service (a forerunner to the Air Force) did not accept women.—
Victor Luckerson,
Smithsonian Magazine,
13 May 2025
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It has been said that Nomad was the forerunner of all modern station wagons.—
David Krumboltz,
Mercury News,
27 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Read more: The Meaning of Germany’s Dramatic Rearmament The shift marks a departure from Merz’s predecessor, Olaf Scholz, who had resisted sending long-range weaponry to Ukraine, citing fears of Russian escalation.—
Callum Sutherland,
Time,
27 May 2025
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Segura’s predecessor, Dana Tomarken, was abruptly fired in April of 2018 after 25 years with the Academy, resulting in her filing a wrongful-termination lawsuit against the Academy.—
Jem Aswad,
Variety,
27 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Granddaddy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/granddaddy. Accessed 3 Jun. 2025.
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