groundbreaker
One who innovates
A groundbreaker is someone or something that pioneers new territory—the first to do something significant in a field.
A groundbreaker in civil rights, a groundbreaker in medical research.
The term derives from the literal act of breaking ground to begin construction, suggesting someone who initiates what others will build upon: She was a groundbreaker in women's athletics.
First to forge ahead
- pathfinderOne who discovers routes
- forerunnerOne that comes before
- explorerOne who investigates unfamiliar regions
- vanguardForemost position or group
trendsetter · leader · spearhead · precursor · herald · progenitor · scout · discoverer
Creating something original
- inventionNew device or method
- creativityCapacity for original thought
- breakthroughSudden important advance
- ingenuityClever, original thinking
visionary · entrepreneur · disruptor · inventor · originality · genius · prototype · patent
Agent of institutional improvement
- radicalRoot-indicating symbol
- activistVigorous cause champion
- rebelAuthority defier
- dissidentOpposer of established systems
agitator · transformer · insurgent · firebrand · avant-garde · protester · subversive · provocateur
Act of unearthing
- foundationUnderlying support structure
- shovelTool for moving earth
- ceremonyFormal event marking occasions
- digUnearth by shoveling
site · building · development · project · ribbon-cutting · cornerstone · inaugural · launch
trailblazer
First to forge ahead
- pathfinderOne who discovers routes
- forerunnerOne that comes before
- explorerOne who investigates unfamiliar regions
vanguard · trendsetter · leader · spearhead · precursor · herald · progenitor · scout · discoverer · adventurer
innovation
Creating something original
- inventionNew device or method
- creativityCapacity for original thought
- breakthroughSudden important advance
ingenuity · visionary · entrepreneur · disruptor · inventor · originality · genius · prototype · patent · startup
reformer
Agent of institutional improvement
dissident · agitator · transformer · insurgent · firebrand · avant-garde · protester · subversive · provocateur · catalyst
excavation
Act of unearthing
- foundationUnderlying support structure
- shovelTool for moving earth
- ceremonyFormal event marking occasions
dig · site · building · development · project · ribbon-cutting · cornerstone · inaugural · launch · commencement
- notable figurespolitical leaders, historical figures, dignitary, luminary, presidents
- originatorsfounder, creator, inventor, innovator, pioneer
- doersdoer, doers, workers, go-getter, makers
- Pioneerspioneer, pioneers, forerunner, trailblazer, innovator
- pushing boundariesboldness, daring, audacity, pioneer, maverick
- trendsetterstrendsetter, trendsetters, influencer, fashionistas, style icons
groundbreakerfollower
One who supports another
imitator · copycat · conformist · derivative · traditionalist
groundbreakerlatecomer
Person arriving past time
successor · inheritor · bandwagoner · also-ran · camp follower