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Synonyms

spearheaded

American  
[speer-hed-id] / ˈspɪərˌhɛd ɪd /

adjective

  1. initiated or led (sometimes used in combination).

    Thanks to a recently spearheaded effort by a consortium of wineries, you can now find these fruit wines at your local wine shop.

    The "Solar Street" is a student-spearheaded, 18-kilowatt array of solar cells on the roofs of a row of houses.

  2. like a spear or spearhead in sharpness or triangular shape, or in being precisely targeted or aimed.

    The workshop taught me a more spearheaded approach to managing tasks in my business.

    The warriors spread out, adopting a spearheaded formation.


verb

  1. the simple past tense and past participle of spearhead.

Etymology

Origin of spearheaded

First recorded in 1800–10; spearhead ( def. ) + -ed 2 ( def. ) for the adjective senses; spearhead ( def. ) + -ed 1 ( def. ) for the verb sense

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 only person who responded to my efforts to hear from the other side was Rebecca Watson, a local Moms for Liberty figure who had spearheaded the campaign against the library.

From Slate • May 4, 2026

The party's first leader, Keir Hardie, represented a constituency in the country's industrial South Valleys, while Welshman Aneurin Bevan spearheaded the founding of the NHS in 1948.

From Barron's • May 4, 2026

As Apple’s hardware chief, he oversaw a redesign of the iPhone and spearheaded the successful transition away from Intel chips.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 21, 2026

The Artemis Program, an international collaboration spearheaded by NASA, aims to put boots back on the moon for the first time in more than 50 years.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 10, 2026

He’d built this moment; he’d spearheaded this mission.

From "A Very Large Expanse of Sea" by Tahereh Mafi

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