seminal
Americanadjective
-
pertaining to, containing, or consisting of semen.
-
Botany. of or relating to seed.
-
having possibilities of future development.
-
highly original and influencing the development of future events.
a seminal artist; seminal ideas.
- Synonyms:
- innovative, formative, primary, germinal
adjective
-
potentially capable of development
-
highly original, influential, and important
-
rudimentary or unformed
-
of or relating to semen
seminal fluid
-
biology of or relating to seed
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of seminal
1350–1400; Middle English < Latin sēminālis, equivalent to sēmin- (stem of sēmen ) seed, semen + -ālis -al 1
Explanation
Call something seminal when it's so original, so groundbreaking and awesome that it will influence everything that comes after it. Picasso produced more than a few seminal works of art, for example. Technically, seminal means something related to semen or seeds. But these days people more often use the word to describe something that plants the seed for creative growth. An innovative piece of music or literature, a fresh new idea, or an invention that changes everything could each be called seminal. Synonyms include critical, fundamental, original, and primary.
Vocabulary lists containing seminal
100 SAT words Beginning with "S"
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
This Week in Pop Culture: February 2 - 8, 2019
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Just Mercy
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
The beloved singer, 51, rose to fame as part of The Fugees and released her seminal solo record The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill in 1998 - still her only studio album.
From BBC ● Jun. 29, 2026
A co-author of a seminal research paper that kicked off the AI boom, Shazeer quit the company in 2021 to start his own company after Google refused to release a chatbot he developed.
From Barron's ● Jun. 26, 2026
Shin’s long collaboration with Tobias Adrian produced the seminal paper “Liquidity and Leverage,” which mapped how mark-to-market balance sheets turn rising asset prices into procyclical leverage — and how the reverse produces violent feedback loops.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 4, 2026
It began with Childs, who was dancer, choreographer and reciter in Glass’ “Einstein on the Beach,” sharing excerpts from that seminal Glass/Wilson music theater masterpiece.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 21, 2026
And of course, music, the liberation of which is considered a seminal geek accomplishment.
From "Geeks: How Two Lost Boys Rode the Internet Out of Idaho" by Jon Katz
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.
