milestone
Americannoun
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a stone functioning as a milepost.
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a significant event or stage in the life, progress, development, or the like of a person, nation, etc..
Her getting the job of supervisor was a milestone in her career.
noun
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a stone pillar that shows the distance in miles to or from a place
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a significant event in life, history, etc
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of milestone
Explanation
A milestone is a significant event in your life. Often a milestone marks the start of a new chapter. For example, the day you graduated from high school was a milestone in your life. Milestone literally refers to a roadside marker that lists the distance to a particular location. These days, the word is more often used figuratively to refer to significant events in life, like graduating from college or getting married. It acts sort of like the road sign: it's often a moment when you reflect on where you stand in life. A milestone can also be a nonpersonal event that results in a big change, such as a milestone victory or a company's sales milestone.
Vocabulary lists containing milestone
Prisoner B-3087
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Nelson Mandela "I am Prepared to Die" (1964)
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History is made in PA: Clinton's DNC Acceptance Speech
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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:
Lynette is now eight years in breast cancer remission - a milestone she never thought she'd see but she says it came with a fight.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
While Dr. Snyder’s dopamine hypothesis was a scientific milestone, it turned out to be incomplete.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
As she approached the momentous milestone, Saar appeared more interested in creating new art than in dissecting her legacy.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 27, 2026
"We are very happy, as a government, to witness this milestone, especially as we continue pushing for local value addition and beneficiation," he said.
From Barron's ● Jul. 26, 2026
He sat on the burning milestone with his matted hair and eyes like windows, and was glad to be able to look away sometimes.
From "The God of Small Things" by Arundhati Roy
The hope is that Gen Z will still achieve these milestones, potentially just a little later on, and that salaries and employment rates will recover as this group progress into their 30s.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
AMD will also invest up to $5 billion in Anthropic—its first check into the AI firm—as certain deployment milestones are met.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026
The district also must state “who is accountable for execution, and the specific milestones that will mark successful completion. Generalized or unsupported action items will not be sufficient.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026
Getting your finances in order will help you to eventually reach other milestones.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 14, 2026
“I had no father at graduations, milestones, my wedding. “I lost out on a whole relationship in high school, middle school, college, without a father.”
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
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.
