Synonyms

groundbreaking

American

[ground-brey-king] / ˈgraʊndˌbreɪ kɪŋ /

noun

the act or ceremony of breaking ground for a new construction project.

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

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.

The battery-powered big rig has been advertised as a groundbreaking freight truck capable of traveling up to 500 miles on a single charge.

From Los Angeles Times

And one thing that Ilia will absolutely do, aside from everything he’ll do that’s amazing and incredible and groundbreaking technically, he’s going to put on an amazing performance.”

From Los Angeles Times

“Mayor Karen Bass will continue working to solve the biggest problems facing our city with groundbreaking efforts on housing affordability, reductions in street homelessness and public safety stats sitting at 60-year lows.”

From Los Angeles Times

Last year, Price fainted while appearing at a groundbreaking for the upgrade of the Los Angeles Convention Center, which is located in his district.

From Los Angeles Times

Then he’d shown the boy a newspaper article about how Lois’s groundbreaking policies had been implemented by dozens of other schools.

From Literature

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023