early 15c., from grand- + father (n.), probably on analogy of French grand-père. Replaced grandsire and Old English ealdef?der. Grandfather clause originally (1899) referred to exemptions from post-Reconstruction voting restrictions (literacy, property tax) in the U.S. South for men whose forebears had had the right to vote before 1867 (thus allowing poor and illiterate whites to continue to vote). Grandfather clock is from 1894, originally grandfather's clock (1876), "a furniture dealer's name" [OED] from "My Grandfather's Clock," the 1876 song by Henry Clay Work that was enormously popular (and loathed) in late 1870s. It indicates that they were beginning to seem old-fashioned; they were previously known as tall case clocks or eight-day clocks.
雙語例句
1. He sat listening to the tick of the grandfather clock.
他坐在那兒，聽著落地式大擺鐘嘀嗒作響。
來自柯林斯例句
2. My great-grandfather was a person of some importance here.
我曾祖父曾是這兒的頭面人物。
來自柯林斯例句
3. My great-grandfather made horseshoes and nails and what have you.
我曾祖父打制馬掌、鐵釘等諸如此類的東西。
來自柯林斯例句
4. Her great-grandfather had clearly been a dedicated and stoical traveller.
她的曾祖父顯然是一位非常投入而且堅忍不拔的旅行愛好者。
來自柯林斯例句
5. Adam spent a lot of time in his grandfather's office.