frontier

[ fruhn-teer, fron-; also, especially British, fruhn-teer ]

noun

1. the part of a country that borders another country; boundary; border.
2. the land or territory that forms the furthest extent of a country's settled or inhabited regions.
3. Often frontiers.
   1. the limit of knowledge or the most advanced achievement in a particular field:

      the frontiers of physics.

   2. an outer limit in a field of endeavor, especially one in which the opportunities for research and development have not been exploited:

      the frontiers of space exploration.

4. Mathematics. boundary ( def 3 ).

adjective

1. of, relating to, or located on the frontier:

   a frontier town.

frontier

/ frʌnˈtɪə; ˈfrʌntɪə /

noun

1. 1. the region of a country bordering on another or a line, barrier, etc, marking such a boundary
   2. ( as modifier )

      a frontier post

2. 1. the edge of the settled area of a country
   2. ( as modifier )

      the frontier spirit

3. often plural the limit of knowledge in a particular field

   the frontiers of physics have been pushed back

Other Words From

• fron·tierless adjective
• fron·tierlike adjective
• semi·fron·tier noun
• transfron·tier adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of frontier¹

1350–1400; Middle English frounter < Old French frontier, equivalent to front (in the sense of opposite side; front ) + -ier -ier ²

Word History and Origins

Origin of frontier¹

C14: from Old French frontiere , from front (in the sense: part which is opposite); see front

Synonym Study

See boundary.

Example Sentences

I think this is a very important frontier for protein science.

From Quanta Magazine

They joined forces to create Science Service, which began syndicating articles about the frontiers of science to newspapers around the country.

From Science News

For Microsoft, bringing streaming from the cloud to Xbox Game Pass has been revolutionary and opens up a new frontier with billions of gamers worldwide.

From Digiday

Musk’s impromptu interview on Clubhouse seemingly opened up a new frontier in the world of Web communication.

From Washington Post

Mike Daly, the lead designer, knew that they were playing on the frontier of what was possible — and acceptable to players.

From Washington Post

Privacy advocates such as the Electronic Frontier Foundation say everyone should use it.

From The Daily Beast

A cousin took me to the National Frontier Trail Museum, where I jotted down dutiful notes.

From The Daily Beast

She went ahead and flew on Frontier Flight 1143 from Cleveland back to Dallas.

From The Daily Beast

Nothing but watch, that is, and prevent Kurdish reinforcements from crossing the frontier to help defend Kobani.

From The Daily Beast

A guy with a baseball cap tells me that the frontier one closed last month.

From The Daily Beast

And it was no light task, then, for six hundred men to keep the peace on a thousand miles of frontier.

From Project Gutenberg

He was long engaged in sanguinary war with the Turks and the French, who pillaged and destroyed his frontier towns.

From Project Gutenberg

Next morning Rome rang with the affair; by noon all three Englishmen were safely over the frontier.

From Project Gutenberg

The wild frontier life had drawn him in and under, as in a whirlpool; but he was New Englander yet at heart.

From Project Gutenberg

Ten victories would not cost as much as the first week's march towards the frontier.

From Project Gutenberg