Definition of seminal
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Examples of seminal in a Sentence
Kandel was awarded the Nobel Prize in medicine in 2000 for his seminal observation that it was in the action of the synapses between cells that memory existed, not in the cells themselves, and that a molecule called cyclic AMP was what allowed cells to retain memory over the long term. —Michael Greenberg, New York Review of Books, 4 Dec. 2008
Writer Susan Sontag died December 28 at age 71 after a long battle with cancer. She left behind an impressive body of fiction and criticism, including her seminal 1960s essays “Notes on Camp” and “Against Interpretation.” —Allan Gurganus, Advocate, 1 Feb. 2005
I wonder if the curators who organized “Matisse Picasso” ever asked themselves why it was that Alfred H. Barr Jr., the first director of the Museum of Modern Art and the guiding spirit behind the museum's seminal exhibitions of both Picasso and Matisse, never mounted a show like the one that has now arrived at MoMA QNS. Such an exhibition might seem to be logical, almost inevitable for the Museum of Modern Art. —Jed Perl, New Republic, 3 Mar. 2003
Recent Examples of seminal from the Web
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Getting to know their story through the investigation undertaken by Victoria Cruz, a seminal activist in her own right, has been one of the great honors of my career.
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Scott Freiman takes viewers into the studio as the Fab Four create their seminal 1966 album that some regard as the best ever.
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Additionally, several acts are slated to play their seminal albums in full including Dinosaur Jr., The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Built to Spill, Fishbone, Bayside, Mayday Parade, The Lawrence Arms, that dog. and two others yet to be announced.
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Along with its instruments, the craft will carry a photo of Parker, a copy of his seminal 1958 solar wind paper, and an inscription of his choosing.
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In a year of programmed events there will be exhibitions of work by seminal British sculptor Tony Cragg, as well as the Chilean polymath Alfredo Jaar.
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The group's influence isn't only felt in music but also in film, with their seminal album The Virgin Suicides serving as the score of Sofia Coppola's cult classic of the same name (2000).
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Start on the top floor to take in a seminal retrospective of captivating light compositions, Lumia: Thomas Wilfred and the Art of Light, on view through July 23.
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One of her seminal achievements as a counselor, which Obama described, was creation of school-wide college-readiness program.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'seminal'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of seminal
Middle English, from Latin seminalis, from semin-, semen seed — more at semen
First Known Use: 14th century
Other Biology Terms
SEMINAL Defined for English Language Learners
seminal
playDefinition of seminal for English Language Learners
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: having a strong influence on ideas, works, events, etc., that come later : very important and influential
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medical : of or containing semen
Medical Dictionary
seminal
playMedical Definition of seminal
: of, relating to, or consisting of seed or semen seminal discharge
Learn More about seminal
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See words that rhyme with seminal Nglish: Translation of seminal for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of seminal for Arabic speakers
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