German word

Vorfahr

Pronunciation

IPA/ˈfoːɐ̯ˌfaːɐ̯/

Meaning

  • masculine nounancestor

Example

Ich kenne kaum noch meine Vorfahren.

I barely know my ancestors anymore.

Illustration for Vorfahr (ancestor)

More examples

In der Ahnenforschung entdeckte sie einen entfernten Vorfahr.

In genealogical research, she discovered a distant ancestor.

Core concept

A family line reaches backward from the present generation to the people whose lives stand earlier in it.

Common phrases

  • direkter Vorfahr

    direct ancestor

  • gemeinsamer Vorfahr

    common ancestor

  • meine Vorfahren

    my ancestors

Similar words

Vorfahre: A blood relative from an earlier generation.
Ahne: A person from a past generation in one's family line.

Definition in German

Eine Person aus früheren Generationen der eigenen Familie, von der heutige Angehörige abstammen.

Word origin

Vorfahr combines vor, meaning 'before' or 'ahead', with the stem of fahren, 'to go', and originally referred to someone who went before before acquiring its family meaning.

Usage tips

  • Vorfahr is masculine, and its regular plural is Vorfahren, as in von meinen Vorfahren for 'from my ancestors'.

Other meanings

  • forefathernoun

Opposites

Word lists with this word