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sb's forebears
forebear 常用复数，指整个家族的祖先；单数形式较少见。
My forebears emigrated from China in the 19th century.
我的祖先在19世纪从中国移居国外。
祖先；祖宗
forebears — plural of forebear
先理解核心含义，再看它在真实句子里的用法。
祖先；祖宗
a person from whom you are descended
My forebears emigrated from China in the 19th century.
我的祖先在19世纪从中国移居国外。
祖先。
An ancestor.
你的祖先
a person from whom you are descended
My forebear came to this country in the 1800s and started a small farm.
我的祖先在19世纪来到这个国家，开办了一个小农场。
She often tells stories about her forebears who were skilled carpenters.
她经常讲起她那些手艺精湛的木匠祖先的故事。
The museum displays tools that belonged to our town's early forebears.
博物馆展出了我们小镇早期祖先使用过的工具。
forebear 常用复数，指整个家族的祖先；单数形式较少见。
My forebears emigrated from China in the 19th century.
我的祖先在19世纪从中国移居国外。
该结构后接人，表示某人的祖先；forebear 比 ancestor 更正式，略带书面语色彩。
She is a forebear of the current president.
她是现任总统的一位祖先。
Not this
I must forebear from eating sweets.
Use this
I must forbear from eating sweets.
forebear 是名词，意为“祖先”；表示“克制、忍耐”的动词是 forbear。此处需要动词，因此应改拼写为 forbear，注意二者拼写不同。
Not this
He is one of my forebear.
Use this
He is one of my forebears.
forebear 是可数名词，在“one of + 复数名词”结构中，介词 of 后要用复数形式，因此应写 forebears。
Focus on the distinctions below. Other candidates are kept compact until a reliable usage note is available.
我们的祖先
Our forebears crossed the ocean in search of a better life.
我们的祖先横渡大洋，寻找更好的生活。
远祖
This custom was passed down from our distant forebears.
这一习俗是从我们的远祖传下来的。
人类祖先
Early human forebears used simple stone tools.
早期人类祖先使用简单的石器。
纪念祖先
Each autumn they hold a ceremony to honor their forebears.
每年秋天，他们都会举行仪式纪念祖先。
发短 /ɛ/ 音 (如 head, bread)
Use forebears naturally, then get feedback on meaning, tone, grammar, and phrasing.
Revisit a common error or keep this word in your review list.
把 forebear 拆成 fore（在前）+ bear（生育）：在前头生育你的人，就是祖先。
语域：formal 常见场景：家谱与家族史叙述、历史或正式书面语 forebear 是比较正式、偏书面的词，通常用于家谱、家族史或正式文字中；日常口语里更常说 ancestor。
与 forebear 的词尾 -bear（/bɛr/）同韵的词：bear、bare 都发 /bɛr/；wear、pear、tear（撕破）、there 等的重读元音都是 /ɛr/，与 /bɛr/ 押韵。注意：tear 作名词“眼泪”时读 /tɪr/；forbear（动词，意为“克制”或“忍耐”）是拼写相近的另一词，重音在后：/fɔrˈbɛr/，而 forebear 重音在前：/ˈfɔrˌbɛr/。
Dictionary facts from ECDICT, WIKTIONARY.
Watch the sound change