frontier
[fruhn-teer, fron-; also, esp. British, fruhn-teer]
- the part of a country that borders another country; boundary; border.
- the land or territory that forms the furthest extent of a country's settled or inhabited regions.
- Often frontiers.
- the limit of knowledge or the most advanced achievement in a particular field: the frontiers of physics.
- 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.
- Mathematics. boundary(def 2).
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- of, relating to, or located on the frontier: a frontier town.
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Origin of frontier
Synonym study
1. See boundary.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Related Words
perimetermarchborderlineboundconfinesedgelimitvergeborderlandboondocksoutskirtsunknownoutbackbackwoodsbushhinterlandbackwaterbackcountrybooniesExamples from the Web for frontier
Contemporary Examples
She went ahead and flew on Frontier Flight 1143 from Cleveland back to Dallas.
Nothing but watch, that is, and prevent Kurdish reinforcements from crossing the frontier to help defend Kobani.
A guy with a baseball cap tells me that the frontier one closed last month.
At a minimum it could boost the number of troops it has patrolling the 900-kilometer frontier, Yavuz told The Daily Beast.
They said that on August 23 they had arrived by train in the Rostov region of Russia near the Ukraine frontier.
Historical Examples
The agitations and vexations of other governments stop at the Austrian frontier.
Thus the Mohmands cross the frontier and the action of Shabkadr is fought.
The Story of the Malakand Field ForceSir Winston S. Churchill
They may throw a sidelight on the great drama of frontier war.
The Story of the Malakand Field ForceSir Winston S. Churchill
Thence we have followed it to Mardan and across the frontier.
The Story of the Malakand Field ForceSir Winston S. Churchill
The dead man, they said, had desired to be buried across the frontier.
The Story of the Malakand Field ForceSir Winston S. Churchill
frontier
- the region of a country bordering on another or a line, barrier, etc, marking such a boundary
- (as modifier)a frontier post
- US and Canadian
- the edge of the settled area of a country
- (as modifier)the frontier spirit
- (often plural) the limit of knowledge in a particular fieldthe frontiers of physics have been pushed back
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Word Origin
C14: from Old French frontiere, from front (in the sense: part which is opposite); see front
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for frontier
n.
c.1400, from Old French frontier "prow of a ship, front rank of an army" (13c.), noun use of adjective frontier "facing, neighboring," from front "brow" (see front (n.)).
Originally the front line of an army, sense of "borderland" is first attested early 15c. In reference to North America, from 1670s; later with a specific sense:
What is the frontier? ... In the census reports it is treated as the margin of that settlement which has a density of two or more to the square mile. [F.J. Turner, "The Frontier in American History," 1920]
Frontiersman is from 1782.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper