progenitor
noun

-  a biologically related ancestor

- a person or thing that first indicates a direction, originates something, or serves as a model; a predecessor; a precursor

The Cambridge Dictionary

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WORD ORIGIN

"Progenitor" comes from the Latin verb "progignere," which itself is derived from pro-, meaning "forth," and gignere, meaning "to beget" or "to produce." So, a progenitor is literally one who brings forth or produces. The -or suffix in Latin often denotes an agent who is performing a particular action.

This term was used in Latin to refer to ancestors or forefathers. When it was adopted into English in the late 14th century, it maintained that meaning, often referring to an individual who led to the creation of a family, a movement, a field of study, etc. Today, we often use "progenitor" in a figurative sense to refer to the originator of a lineage or the starter of a trend.

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TEN TOP TREND-SETTERS

1. Steve Jobs - Co-founder of Apple Inc. His work led to a revolution in multiple industries, including personal computers (Mac), music (iPod and iTunes), smartphones (iPhone), and tablets (iPad).

2. Mark Zuckerberg - As the founder of Facebook, he popularized social media. His platform created a new way for people to connect and share information, a trend that many other companies have since followed.

3. Elon Musk - Founder of SpaceX and CEO of Tesla Inc., he has championed the trend toward electric vehicles and commercial space travel.

4. Satoshi Nakamoto - The pseudonymous person(s) who developed Bitcoin, starting the trend of cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology.

5. Jeff Bezos - Founder of Amazon, he led the way for e-commerce and has also influenced trends in digital streaming, cloud computing, and more.

6. Oprah Winfrey - Through her television show, she popularized the format of daytime talk shows and has had a major influence on American popular culture.

7. Kim Kardashian - A key figure in the trend of 'influencer culture' on social media platforms, particularly Instagram.

8. J.K. Rowling - The author of the Harry Potter series, she popularized the trend of extensive cross-media franchises, including books, films, and more.

9. Larry Page and Sergey Brin - Founders of Google, they have been instrumental in trends related to internet search, online advertising, and various tech innovations.

10. Greta Thunberg - A Swedish environmental activist who has sparked a global trend in youth activism for climate change awareness and action, resulting in the "Fridays for Future" school strike movement.
  
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SYNONYMS

- ancestor, architect, author, cornerstone, cradle, creator, forebear, forerunner, founder, fount, fountain, fountainhead, genesis, groundbreaker, inaugurator, initiator, instigator, inventor, mainspring, original/root cause, pioneer, precursor, prime cause (mover), PROGENITOR, rootstock, root source, seedbed, spring, stem, taproot, trailblazer, trendsetter, wellhead, wellspring

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SMUGGLE OWAD into an English conversation, say something like:

“Did you know that domestic cats can be traced back to wild PROGENITORS that interbred well over 100,000 years ago?”

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