advanced
Americanadjective
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placed ahead or forward.
with one foot advanced.
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ahead or far or further along in progress, complexity, knowledge, skill, etc..
an advanced class in Spanish;
to take a course in advanced mathematics;
Our plans are too advanced to make the change now.
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pertaining to or embodying ideas, practices, attitudes, etc., taken as being more enlightened or liberal than the standardized, established, or traditional.
advanced theories of child care;
the more advanced members of the artistic community.
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far along in time.
the advanced age of most senators.
adjective
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being ahead in development, knowledge, progress, etc
advanced studies
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having reached a comparatively late stage
a man of advanced age
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ahead of the times
advanced views on religion
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of advanced
First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English; advance + -ed 2
Explanation
Use the adjective advanced to describe something that's ahead, especially in terms of growth or development. Your plans to build the world's best tree house are at an advanced stage if you're nearly ready to add a roof and invite your friends to visit. Things are advanced when they happen early or are ahead of the curve or above average. Your advanced reading ability in elementary school might have had your teachers scrambling to keep you interested, and if a scientist's cancer vaccine is at an advanced stage, it's nearly ready to be tested on people. Advanced comes from the verb advance, which comes from the Old French avancier, "move forward," from a Late Latin root word, abante, "from before."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
During the qualifying round, South Africa won its group by finishing ahead of Nigeria and advanced despite starting the campaign with a loss due to an ineligible player used in a match against Lesotho.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 9, 2026
That was set to add to an 11% gain the previous day amid excitement that Google and Nvidia are reportedly using Intel as a backup manufacturer for advanced processors.
From Barron's • Jun. 9, 2026
Pulte has not publicly advanced this principle recently.
From Salon • Jun. 9, 2026
Meanwhile, its advanced digital radio segment orders could pick up strongly in 2H on rising demand for antidrone solutions, the analyst says.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 9, 2026
Dad once told me it’s a hundred times more advanced than Unremarkable tech.
From "The Manifestor Prophecy" by Angie Thomas
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.