ˌä-ˌvän(t)-ˈgärd 
ˌa-;
ə-ˈvänt-ˌgärd;
ˌa-ˌvōⁿ-ˈgärd,
ˌa-ˌvȯn(t)-ˈgärd
: an intelligentsia that develops new or experimental concepts especially in the arts
the avant-garde in the film industry
: of or relating to an avant-garde
avant-garde writers
an avant-garde filmmaker
Examples of avant-garde in a Sentence
Noun
to the theater world's avant-garde, the melodrama seemed like a very old-fashioned play whose time had come and gone
Adjective
a very avant-garde artist whose works wouldn't even be considered art by many traditionalists
Recent Examples on the Web
Lindsay Kimble, PEOPLE, 4 May 2026
Taylor Hill/FilmMagic/Getty The 2017 event paid tribute to Japanese designer Rei Kawakubo and her Comme des Garçons avant-garde designs that play with the body's shape and form.
—Luis Giraldo, CBS News, 4 May 2026
Emily Nussbaum, New Yorker, 17 May 2026
And then there’s some really exciting kind of avant-garde science to rejuvenate and basically reverse aging that’s in the biotech field.
—Torie Bosch, STAT, 16 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for avant-garde
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Noun
The 2026 Met Gala is here, and PEOPLE will be on the red carpet as all the stars arrive to show off an array of exciting designer looks — from the avant-garde to the nearly nude.
—Lindsay Kimble, PEOPLE, 4 May 2026
Taylor Hill/FilmMagic/Getty The 2017 event paid tribute to Japanese designer Rei Kawakubo and her Comme des Garçons avant-garde designs that play with the body's shape and form.
—Luis Giraldo, CBS News, 4 May 2026
Adjective
The show, which featured a sizzling performance by Walton Goggins, as an authoritarian vigilante, was an avant-garde breakthrough for television.
—Emily Nussbaum, New Yorker, 17 May 2026
And then there’s some really exciting kind of avant-garde science to rejuvenate and basically reverse aging that’s in the biotech field.
—Torie Bosch, STAT, 16 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for avant-garde
Cite this Entry
“Avant-garde.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/avant-garde. Accessed 20 May. 2026.
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