What does grandparent mean?
Grandparent is a gender-neutral kinship term for a parent's parent. In its standard use, it names either a grandfather or a grandmother, and the plural grandparents often refers collectively to both of a person's grandfathers and grandmothers, though context may make a particular pair or grandparent clear. The word is common in everyday speech in British, American, and other English-speaking varieties, and its straightforward formation makes it especially useful when a speaker wants to avoid specifying gender. A grandparent can be a biological relative, an adoptive relative, or a person who has taken on a grandparent role, so the term may describe a relationship rather than biology alone. Grandparents are often associated with family stories, recipes, traditions, affection, and intergenerational support, but these associations are cultural rather than inherent in the word's meaning. In writing, grandparent is unhyphenated, while great-grandparent is usually hyphenated. As a countable noun, it takes the ordinary plural grandparents.
nounA parent of one's parent; thus, a grandfather or grandmother. The term is gender-neutral and may refer to either.
- A parent of one's parent, whether male or female.
"Her grandparent taught her that a bookshelf was a map to somewhere else."
"Her grandparent taught her that a bookshelf was a map to somewhere else."
"The school invited each pupil to share a story about a grandparent who had influenced their family."
The regular plural form; it often refers collectively to a person's grandfathers and grandmothers.
"Her grandparents met at a railway station while returning from the war."
Grand + parent: the compound's two familiar words already encode a two-step move up the family tree.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of grandparent
Grandparent is an English compound formed from grand- and parent. Both elements ultimately have Latin sources: grand- came through French from Latin grandis, while parent derives from Latin parens, a parent or guardian. In family terms, grand- came to indicate one generation further removed, and the compound became established in ordinary English during the 19th century. It provides a gender-neutral counterpart to grandfather and grandmother and belongs to a wider family of English formations built with grand-, including grandson and granddaughter.
Related word forms
How grandparent is actually used
This is a neutral, everyday kinship term. The plural grandparents often refers collectively to a person's grandfathers and grandmothers, while the singular can be used when gender is irrelevant or deliberately unspecified.
Easily confused with grandparent
A parent is one's direct adult parent, whereas a grandparent is the parent of one's parent.