groundbreaking

UK/ˈɡɹaʊndˌbɹeɪkɪŋ/US/ˈɡɹaʊndˌbɹeɪkɪŋ/

adjectiveB2+Occasional — familiar, but not everyday · #10,066 of 15,258leans written

Groundbreaking means doing something nobody had done before. A groundbreaking study, groundbreaking work, truly groundbreaking.

It is heavy praise and heavily overused, particularly in press releases, where about nine things a week are groundbreaking. Genuinely groundbreaking work is usually recognised late. The literal sense is the ceremonial first digging at a building site: a groundbreaking ceremony, which is chiefly American. Note break new ground, which is the verb phrase behind it and is used more sparingly.

Definitions of groundbreaking

1adjectivegroundbreakingDoing something nobody had done before.B2+
“The film was groundbreaking for its use of computer-generated dinosaurs.”
synonyms: pioneering, innovative

groundbreaking is a quality of pioneering.

Where it comes from

From ground + breaking, in reference to the practice of breaking ground at the beginning of a new building or construction.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA

Practised in Music, Art & Culture, News & Communication

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groundbreaking in the wild

The shovel used during the groundbreaking is often a special ceremonial shovel, sometimes colored gold, meant to be saved for subsequent display and may be engraved.
Groundbreaking
In other groundbreaking ceremonies, a bulldozer is used instead of a shovel to mark the first day of construction.
Groundbreaking
A groundbreaking ceremony was held on October 10, 1998, presided over by Jay E.
Detroit Michigan Temple
A groundbreaking ceremony, to signify the beginning of construction, was held on May 29, 1999, conducted by Carl B.
Veracruz Mexico Temple
The name of the award honours two of the most important figures in Danish cinema, actress Bodil Kjer and groundbreaking director Bodil Ipsen.
Bodil Awards

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From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. These sentences were written by other people about their own subjects; they are here to show the word at work, not as anybody’s opinion.

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