ancestry

views updated May 18 2018

an·ces·try / ˈanˌsestrē/ • n. (pl. -tries) [usu. in sing.] one's family or ethnic descent: his dark eyes came from his Jewish ancestry. ∎  the evolutionary or genetic line of descent of an animal or plant: the ancestry of the rose is extremely complicated. ∎ fig. the origin or background of something.

The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English

ancestry

views updated May 14 2018

ancestry See DESCENT GROUPS.

A Dictionary of Sociology GORDON MARSHALL

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