blueprint

noun

blue·​print ˈblü-ˌprint 

plural blueprints

1

: a photographic print in white on a bright blue ground or blue on a white ground used especially for copying maps, mechanical drawings, and architects' plans

2

: something or someone resembling a blueprint (as in serving as a model or providing guidance)

… few foundations have taken a similar [investing] route, so there was no blueprint to follow.

—Paul Sullivan

He was an anomaly to the rap world when he arrived, but today he is the blueprint for a generation.

—Jeff Ihaza

especially : a detailed plan or program of action

a blueprint for success

blueprint transitive verb

blueprinted; blueprinting; blueprints

It was not something blueprinted from the start or based on a French bistro archetype; it's a restaurant that has grown and evolved …

—Ian McNulty

Synonyms

• arrangement
• design
• game
• game plan
• ground plan
• master plan
• plan
• program
• project
• road map
• scheme
• strategy
• system

Examples of blueprint in a Sentence

a blueprint for reforming the public school system

an ambitious young man with a remarkably detailed blueprint for becoming a millionaire by the age of 25

Recent Examples on the Web

Unlike the standard black or navy suits that carry you through most of the year, summer tailoring doesn’t follow a strict blueprint. —Brett F. Braley-Palko, Forbes.com, 31 May 2025

The film is dedicated to Anderson’s late father-in-law, Fouad Malouf, a businessman and engineer who stashed his own plans in the very shoeboxes that now store Zsa-zsa’s blueprints. —Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 29 May 2025

The first Doctor Who, and the blueprint for the next 58 years, William Hartnell is the man that began it all. —Richard Edwards, Space.com, 29 May 2025

Her style has long been the blueprint for the L.A.-girl uniform: Minimal separates, monochrome tailoring, and Pilates Princess ’fits. —Olivia Allen, Vogue, 29 May 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1857, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for blueprint

• footprint
• imprint
• misprint
• newsprint
• nonprint
• preprint
• reprint
• clint
• dint
• glint
• hint
• lint

Kids Definition

blueprint

1 of 2 noun

blue·​print

ˈblü-ˌprint

1

: a photographic print made with white lines on a blue background and used especially for copying mechanical drawings, maps, and architects' plans

2

: a detailed plan or program of action

blueprint

2 of 2 verb

: to make a blueprint of or for