grandfather

English

WOTD – 9 April 2019

Pronunciation

A grandfather and his granddaughter

Etymology 1

grand- +‎ father; compare French grand-père.

Noun

grandfather (plural grandfathers)

  1. A father of someone’s parent. [from 15th c.]
  2. (by extension) A male forefather.
Synonyms
Antonyms
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Translations

Etymology 2

From grandfather clause: see etymology 1 and clause.

Verb

grandfather (third-person singular simple present grandfathers, present participle grandfathering, simple past and past participle grandfathered)

  1. (intransitive, law) To retain existing laws or rules only for people or organizations previously affected by them, and to apply new laws or rules to the unaffected people or organizations. [from 1950s]
  2. (transitive, law) To retain existing laws or rules for (a person or organization previously affected by them). [from 1950s]
Derived terms
  • grandfather in

Further reading

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