# ancestor vs ancestry

> English confusable word pair

## The two words

### ancestor
*noun · IPA /ˈæn.sɛs.tɚ/ · frequency rank #15,096*
One from whom a person is descended, whether on the father's or mother's side, at any distance of time; a progenitor; a forefather; a forebear.

### ancestry
*noun · IPA /ˈæn.sɛs.tɹi/ · frequency rank #14,881*
The state of being ancestors.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ancestor-vs-ancestry