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A.Word.A.Day--primogenitor Pronunciation: WAV or RealAudio primogenitor (pry-moe-JEN-i-tuhr) noun 1. The earliest ancestor. 2. An ancestor or a forefather. [Late Latin primogenitor : Latin primo, at first (from primus, first.) + Latin genitor, begetter, from gignere, genit-, to beget.] "One theory focuses on `Clay World,' where proteins and the building blocks of genes assemble on clay particles. Another posits a `Hot World,' a scenario that places life's primogenitor at the mouth of undersea hot vents, where chemicals that serve as an early energy source are in abundant supply." Shannon Brownlee, A cosmic imperative: Make life, U.S. News & World Report, 19 Aug 1996. This week's theme: words about relations. X-Bonus It is one of the most beautiful compensations of this life that no man can sincerely try to help another without helping himself. -Ralph Waldo Emerson, American writer and philosopher (1803-1882)

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