groundbreaking
Americannoun
adjective
-
of or relating to such a ceremony.
-
originating or pioneering a new endeavor, field of inquiry, or the like.
Pasteur's groundbreaking work in bacteriology.
Etymology
Origin of groundbreaking
First recorded in 1905–10; ground 1 + break + -ing 1, -ing 2
Explanation
Something groundbreaking is brand new, important, and original, like groundbreaking research that proves your cat really does love you. As a noun, groundbreaking is the traditional way of marking the very first day of a building project, when the ground is officially "broken," either literally with a shovel or figuratively. You could even attend the groundbreaking of a groundbreaking new hotel that's heated and cooled with sustainable geothermal energy. This word comes from the phrase to break ground, originally used to describe both construction and planting crops.
Vocabulary lists containing groundbreaking
Kwame Crashes the Underworld
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The Ice Cream Machine
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Ida B
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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.
It’s his version of and homage to the innovative work of groundbreaking environmental artists Christo and Jeanne-Claude.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 20, 2026
The best part is about the Chicago brainiacs—professors and classmates—their groundbreaking discoveries matching their idiosyncrasies.
From Barron's • Jun. 18, 2026
ITV, which broadcast The Cook Report in the 1980s and 1990s, led the tributes, praising Cook's "groundbreaking approach to investigative journalism" which, it said, "made him one of broadcasting's most trusted and respected figures".
From BBC • Jun. 15, 2026
Their groundbreaking work earned the trio the 2011 Nobel Prize in Physics.
From Science Daily • Jun. 13, 2026
She mesmerized lecture halls of students with her drama and passion, with ideas critics called daring and groundbreaking.
From "I'll Give You the Sun" by Jandy Nelson
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.
