Fore-elder

noun

noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A progenitor or ancestor. Scotland

Etymology

From Middle English foreldre, from fore- (“fore-”) + eldre (“elder, ancestor”); equivalent to fore- + elder. Compare Old Norse foreldrar (“fore-elders”, plural), whence Danish forældre (“parents”), Swedish föräldrar (“parents”). Compare also Dutch voorouder (“ancestor”), German Voreltern (“ancestors”).

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.