head start

American  

Or headstart

noun

1. an advantage given or acquired in any competition, endeavor, etc., as allowing one or more competitors in a race to start before the others.

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head start British  

noun

1. an initial advantage in a competitive situation

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head start Idioms  

1. An early start that confers an advantage, as in This year we'll get a head start on the competition by running more ads. The expression comes from racing, where it was used for a horse being given an advantage of several lengths over the others. Its extension to other areas dates from the early 1900s.

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Etymology

Origin of head start

First recorded in 1885–90

Example Sentences

Anthropic said earlier this month it restricted the release of Mythos to 40 major tech firms to give them a head start in fixing cybersecurity vulnerabilities before they could be exploited by attackers.

From Barron's • Apr. 22, 2026

Wet earth, plenty of sunshine and a lack of frosts have combined to give some plants a noticeable head start.

From BBC • Apr. 19, 2026

“We are heading in another direction in the next decade, and the companies that had a head start will have an advantage.”

From Barron's • Mar. 26, 2026

Schwab is not the only firm now offering children as young as 13 greater autonomy over their investments — a change that they believe can give kids a better head start in building good habits.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 26, 2026

The boy’s death was a complication of her escape, like the absence of a full moon or losing the head start because Lovey had been discovered out of her cabin.

From "The Underground Railroad: A Novel" by Colson Whitehead