pioneer

[ pahy-uh-neer ]

/ ˌpaɪ əˈnɪər /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR pioneer ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a person who is among those who first enter or settle a region, thus opening it for occupation and development by others.

one who is first or among the earliest in any field of inquiry, enterprise, or progress: pioneers in cancer research.

one of a group of foot soldiers detailed to make roads, dig intrenchments, etc., in advance of the main body.

Ecology. an organism that successfully establishes itself in a barren area, thus starting an ecological cycle of life.

(initial capital letter) Aerospace. one of a series of U.S. space probes that explored the solar system and transmitted scientific information to earth.

(initial capital letter) (formerly) a member of a Communist organization in the Soviet Union for children ranging in age from 10 to 16.Compare Komsomol, Octobrist.

verb (used without object)

to act as a pioneer.

verb (used with object)

to be the first to open or prepare (a way, settlement, etc.).

to take part in the beginnings of; initiate: to pioneer an aid program.

to lead the way for (a group); guide.

adjective

being the earliest, original, first of a particular kind, etc.: a pioneer method of adult education.

of, relating to, or characteristic of pioneers: pioneer justice.

being a pioneer: a pioneer fur trader.

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a person who acts as though he or she knows everything and who dismisses the opinions, comments, or suggestions of others.

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Origin of pioneer

1515–25; < Middle French pionier, Old French peonier foot soldier. See peon¹, -eer

SYNONYMS FOR pioneer

2 leader, trailblazer, forerunner, pathfinder.

SEE SYNONYMS FOR pioneer ON THESAURUS.COM

OTHER WORDS FROM pioneer

un·pi·o·neer·ing, adjective

Words nearby pioneer

pinza, pinzón, pio, piolet, pion, pioneer, pioneer day, pioneers, the, piopio, piosity, pious

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for pioneered

They pioneered arena performances and electric light, enabling the first night performances.
We’re All Carnies Now: Why We Can’t Quit the Circus|Anthony Paletta|November 27, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Noyce and his partner Gordon Moore also pioneered a new corporate culture at Intel.
Walter Isaacson’s ‘The Innovators’: How a Gaggle of Geeks Invented the Future|Wendy Smith|October 7, 2014|DAILY BEAST
When Musk decided he want to make electric cars, he was confronting the world that Ford had pioneered.
From the Model T to the Model S|The Daily Beast|September 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Blood transfusions on the battlefield, pioneered by Canadian doctor Norman Bethune in the Spanish Civil War, saved many lives.
Blood and War: The Hard Truth About ‘Boots on the Ground’|Clive Irving|September 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Roosevelt must have been smiling from above at her protégé carrying on the work she had pioneered.
Channeling Eleanor|Eleanor Clift|September 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
We were met by others who had pioneered the way before us and they looked after our group until we learned the ropes.
In the Cards|Alan Cogan
In 1782 there came Mr. John Molson, who started a brewery in the east end, and in 1809 pioneered the steamship lines of Canada.
Montreal 1535-1914, Volume II (of 2)|William Henry Atherton
He pioneered his cause to the utmost, talking about it, writing studies for it, and setting every one else doing the same.
Theodor Leschetizky|Annette Hullah
He pioneered the standard exponential notation for cubes and higher powers of numbers.
Our Legal Heritage, 5th Ed.|S. A. Reilly
After many devious turnings to avoid the heavier pressure-ridges, we pioneered a way for at least a mile and a half.
South!|Sir Ernest Shackleton

British Dictionary definitions for pioneered (1 of 3)

pioneer

/ (ˌpaɪəˈnɪə) /

noun

a colonist, explorer, or settler of a new land, region, etc
(as modifier)a pioneer wagon

an innovator or developer of something new

military a member of an infantry group that digs entrenchments, makes roads, etc

ecology the first species of plant or animal to colonize an area of bare ground

verb

to be a pioneer (in or of)

(tr) to initiate, prepare, or open upto pioneer a medical programme

Word Origin for pioneer

C16: from Old French paonier infantryman, from paon pawn ²; see also peon 1

British Dictionary definitions for pioneered (2 of 3)

Pioneer¹

/ (ˌpaɪəˈnɪə) /

noun

a total abstainer from alcoholic drink, esp a member of the Pioneer Total Abstinence Association, a society devoted to abstention

British Dictionary definitions for pioneered (3 of 3)

Pioneer²

/ (ˌpaɪəˈnɪə) /

noun

any of a series of US spacecraft that studied the solar system, esp Pioneer 10, which made the first flyby of Jupiter (1973), and Pioneer 11, which made the first flyby of Saturn (1979)

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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