grandfather
Americannoun
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the father of one's father or mother
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(often plural) a male ancestor
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(often capital) a familiar term of address for an old man
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dialect a caterpillar or woodlouse
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of grandfather
late Middle English word dating back to 1375–1425; see origin at grand-, father
Explanation
Your grandfather is the father of one of your parents. If your grandfather is quite old and has dozens of grandchildren, it might be hard for him to remember your birthday every year. Everyone has two biological grandfathers, whether they've had the chance to know them or not. In some families, grandmothers and grandfathers are involved in raising and caring for their grandchildren, while in others a grandfather may have died or live very far away. Informally, a grandfather can also be someone who started or invented something: "Blues musician Robert Johnson was the grandfather of rock and roll."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
For Arendt’s grandfather Max, Mr. Meyer writes, Zionism punctured the belief that “one could be on an equal footing as a Jew, as a citizen, and as a German.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
"He's the best father, the best husband, the best grandfather."
From BBC ● Aug. 7, 2026
They had a grandfather, cousins, friends and a stepfather.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 3, 2026
Abdul, who never met his grandfather, was chasing Uganda's first Commonwealth boxing medal since Auckland in 1990 - something which would have been guaranteed had he beaten Thomas.
From BBC ● Jul. 29, 2026
“My book tells me that it’s a grandfather clock,” explained C.C.
From "The Very, Very Far North" by Dan Bar-el
But for most of my life, they felt like the domain of grandfathers, finance bros and people who knew what vermouth was without having to Google it.
From Salon ● Jul. 7, 2026
“We’re asking airmen to strap into jets that their grandfathers, fathers and now they are flying, and it is time for a reset,” said Doug Birkey, executive director of the Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 16, 2026
"I wanted to remind people of the narrative of our grandmothers, grandfathers and great-grandparents, who throughout my childhood said that war is terrifying," the 28-year-old, who goes by the nickname Noi, told AFP.
From Barron's ● Feb. 13, 2026
Baba is a commonly used term in India to refer to mystics and religious gurus and also to fathers or grandfathers by both Hindus and Muslims.
From BBC ● Feb. 12, 2026
Tyler has the middle name Jacob to honor the memory of my grandfathers.
From "The Boy on the Wooden Box" by Leon Leyson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
