progenitor
nounUK /pɹəʊˈd͡ʒɛn.ɪ.tə/ · US /pɹoʊˈd͡ʒɛn.ɪ.tɚ/
Etymology From Middle English progenitour, from Anglo-Norman progenitour, Middle French progeniteur (Modern French progéniteur), and their etymon Latin prōgenitor, from prōgenitus, perfect participle of prōgignere (“to beget”), itself from prō- (“forth”) + gignere (“to beget”). By surface analysis, pro- (“prior, fore-”) + genitor.
1
A forefather, any of a person's direct ancestors.
2
A person from whom one or more people (dynasty, tribe, nation…) are descended.
- Abraham, alias Ibrahim, is the presumed progenitor of both the Jewish and Arab peoples.
3
Biology, Natural sciences An ancestral form of a species.
4
Figuratively A predecessor of something, especially if also a precursor or model.
- ARPANET was the progenitor of the Internet.
- Are neural progenitor cells infected by Zika virus?
1 more example
- From its inception, the index has provided a window onto the history of the book, for it took the advent of a particular type of book — the codex, a sheaf of pages fastened along one edge — to make an index a practical possibility. The progenitor of the modern bound book, the codex gradually supplanted the scroll, a medium inimical to the indexer’s art.2022 February 15, Margalit Fox, “Look It Up? Only if You’re Dishonest and Ignorant”, in The New York Times, →ISSN, archived from the original on 30 Jul 2022:
5
Figuratively Someone who originates something.
6
A founder.
- Derived terms
- chondroprogenitor, legendary progenitor, myoprogenitor, neuroprogenitor, oligoprogenitor, osteoprogenitor, progenitor cell, progenitorial, progenitorship, progenitress
- Related terms
- progenitive, progeny