break ground
Idioms-
Also, break new ground.
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Begin digging into the earth for new construction of some kind. For example, When will they break ground for the town hall? This usage alludes to breaking up the land with a plow. [Early 1700s]
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Take the first steps for a new venture; advance beyond previous achievements. For example, Jeff is breaking new ground in intellectual property law . [Early 1700s]
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.
On April 29, crews from Lush Construction broke ground on his new house in the El Medio neighborhood.
From Los Angeles Times
Micron CEO Sanjay Mehrotra noted on Wednesday’s earnings call that the company is planning to break ground on a new memory fab in upstate New York early next year.
The couple broke ground on the dwelling in 2017, and the resulting property features a main house, a two-story guesthouse, and a pavilion.
From MarketWatch
The National Trust for Historic Preservation disagreed, arguing the administration unlawfully ignored several procedural steps it was required to take before ever breaking ground.
After Toyota broke ground in Georgetown, Ky., in 1986, the industry followed.
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.
