leapfrog
Americannoun
-
a game in which players take turns in leaping over another player bent over from the waist.
-
an advance from one place, position, or situation to another without progressing through all or any of the places or stages in between.
a leapfrog from bank teller to vice president in one short year.
verb (used with object)
-
leapfrogs,
present (3rd person singular)
-
leapfrogged,
past participle, past
-
leapfrogging
present participle
-
to jump over (a person or thing) in or as if in leapfrog.
He leapfrogged the fence to reach the crying child.
-
to move or cause to move as if in leapfrog.
Manufacturers are leapfrogging prices because the cost of raw materials has doubled.
verb (used without object)
-
leapfrogs,
present (3rd person singular)
-
leapfrogged,
past participle, past
-
leapfrogging
present participle
noun
verb
-
-
(intr) to play leapfrog
-
(tr) to leap in this way over (something)
-
-
to advance or cause to advance by jumps or stages
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
leapfrogsimple
-
leapfrogssimple
-
have leapfroggedperfect
-
has leapfroggedperfect
-
am leapfroggingprogressive
-
are leapfroggingprogressive
-
is leapfroggingprogressive
-
have been leapfroggingperfect progressive
-
has been leapfroggingperfect progressive
Past
-
leapfroggedsimple
-
had leapfroggedperfect
-
was leapfroggingprogressive
-
were leapfroggingprogressive
-
had been leapfroggingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of leapfrog
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.
See Examples For:
We must act boldly, leapfrog over all other agencies, make it a two-horse race with CAA, and the only way to accomplish that is a merger.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026
That means a willingness to master new skills and leapfrog colleagues who have more experience—for instance, by taking a weekend to figure out how to use new vibe-coding tools.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026
"The industry has to innovate and leapfrog, and not just copy and paste China," he said.
From Barron's ● May 13, 2026
I like it when incumbents are operating on outdated systems because that creates a substantial opportunity to leapfrog competitors with modern integrated technology.
From MarketWatch ● May 6, 2026
Seth dashed over to the first log, scrambled onto it without much trouble, and, taking a jump as if he were playing leapfrog, ended up seated atop the second log.
From "Fablehaven" by Brandon Mull
It is Korda's second Chevron title in three seasons and ensures she leapfrogs Jeeno Thitikul in the rankings, after the Thai missed the cut.
From BBC ● Apr. 26, 2026
The increase leapfrogs the Fed's 75 basis points increase last month for the largest since central banks began responding to inflation in force earlier this year.
From Reuters ● Jul. 13, 2022
Karla: Your question leapfrogs over a more important question: Should you send that email at all?
From Washington Post ● Jan. 20, 2022
Directed with admirable clarity by Adrienne Campbell-Holt, “Joan” leapfrogs through time to connect the dots that define its restless, ever-questing protagonist.
From New York Times ● Jan. 28, 2019
But Tom was most astonished to see how he fired himself off—snap! like the leapfrogs which you make out of a goose's breastbone.
From Journeys Through Bookland, Vol. 2 by Charles Herbert Sylvester
But Ms. Raman leapfrogged Mr. Pratt on Sunday after tens of thousands of additional ballots were counted.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 8, 2026
Anthropic has leapfrogged ahead of rival artificial intelligence developer OpenAI, filing its confidential paperwork for an initial public offering.
From Barron's ● Jun. 2, 2026
When undecided voters were asked who they would vote for if they had to make a choice, Raman leapfrogged Pratt — though by less than a percentage point, the poll found.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 13, 2026
After spending 209 days at the top of the table, the Gunners have been leapfrogged by Pep Guardiola's side on goals scored.
From BBC ● Apr. 23, 2026
But she could not take her eyes from her brother as he leapfrogged from log to log, higher and higher.
From "Fablehaven" by Brandon Mull
When Venus and Serena were leapfrogging each other early in their careers, often clashing in Grand Slam finals across continents and surfaces, Serena insisted their competition existed in a supportive environment.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026
First, the court agreed to issue its final judgment in Callais quickly, leapfrogging over the normal period when parties could seek Supreme Court rehearing.
From Slate ● May 13, 2026
“Concerns about China and others catching up or leapfrogging the U.S. in AI is something to keep in mind,” he says.
From Barron's ● Dec. 12, 2025
As China’s population shrinks and ages, Beijing is betting on leapfrogging technological advance and innovation to boost productivity.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2025
But by leapfrogging the United States into space, the Russians had turned even local racial policy into fodder for the international conflict.
From "Hidden Figures" by Margot Lee Shetterly
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
