forefather Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun the founder of a family
    father; sire.
    • keep the faith of our forefathers
  2. noun person from an earlier time who contributed to the tradition shared by some group
    • our forefathers brought forth a great nation

WordNet

Fore"fa`ther noun
Definitions
  1. One who precedes another in the line of genealogy in any degree, but usually in a remote degree; an ancestor.
    Respecting your forefathers, you would have been taught to respect yourselves. Burke.

Webster 1913