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
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(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:
The 104-year-old company’s attempt to leapfrog into the 21st century is running into resistance from its agents and customers alike.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 8, 2026
Third, after acknowledging that we dropped the ball on wind and solar, we should try to leapfrog China on the next wave of energy technology.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 15, 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I like it when incumbents are operating on outdated systems because that creates a substantial opportunity to leapfrog competitors with modern integrated technology.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
Another leapfrog jump and he sat atop the nine-foot 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
Intent on ensuring that China leapfrogs the U.S. as the world’s pre-eminent power, Xi Jinping recently made the gutsy and perhaps counterintuitive decision to invest massively in an arena of American strength—basic research.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 23, 2026
“Surrender” leapfrogs through Bono’s and U2’s improbable story in vignettes that zigzag between poetic and prosaic, devout and skeptical, privileged and conscientious, mystical and political.
From New York Times ● Mar. 17, 2023
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
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
Despite Friday's victory ensuring the shield was theirs, the really hard work was done in last week's crucial win over title rivals Leeds Rhinos at Headingley, where they leapfrogged their rivals to go top.
From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026
Michael was already the biggest ever musical biopic, having leapfrogged 2018's Bohemian Rhapsody - about the band Queen.
From BBC ● Jun. 29, 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
Newsom climbed from San Francisco mayor to lieutenant governor to California’s governorship, where he quietly stewed as Harris leapfrogged past him into the vice presidency.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 25, 2026
Only gradually, as the Bantu multiplied and incorporated cattle and dry-climate cereals into their economy, did they fill in the leapfrogged areas.
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
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
The victory takes the English club to the top of Pool 4, leapfrogging champions Bordeaux-Begles and Northampton who meet in France on Sunday in a re-run of last season's final.
From Barron's ● Jan. 10, 2026
At least one team that kept leapfrogging us didn’t reach their Atlantic goal.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 8, 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
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
