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spear·head | \ ˈspir-ˌhed 
\
\Definition of spearhead
(Entry 1 of 2)
1 : the sharp-pointed head of a spear
2 : a leading element, force, or influence in an undertaking or development
spearhead
verbspearheaded; spearheading; spearheads
Definition of spearhead (Entry 2 of 2)
: to serve as leader or leading element of
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Examples of spearhead in a Sentence
Noun
Her book was the spearhead of the clean water movement. Verb
She spearheaded the campaign for better schools.
The movement was spearheaded by the teachers' union.
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Recent Examples on the Web: Noun All three are quality defenders, which should make for an aggressive spearhead atop the Wildcats’ defense, the kind of tone-setting attribute that can shape a team’s identity.
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Dan Greene, SI.com, "Perimeter Depth a Hallmark of Kentucky's Newest Talented Freshmen," 1 Oct. 2019 Another of the Under-19's starlets, Emre Aydinel enjoyed a successful season as the spearhead for the side.
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SI.com, "Borussia Dortmund: 5 of BVB's Best Youngsters Who Deserve a Shot at the First Team in 2019/20," 23 July 2019 Police on Saturday detained Lyubov Sobol, an unregistered candidate who has become a spearhead of the protest.
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Washington Post, "1,000s gather for Moscow election protest," 11 Aug. 2019 And on the right, Gen. J. Lawton Collins led his U.S. 7th Corps toward Utah Beach with the 4th Infantry Division as his spearhead.
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Washington Post, "AP Was There: D-Day correspondent returns 10 years later," 4 June 2019 The 27-year-old was the spearhead to Leicester's title winning season in 2016, alongside England forward Jamie Vardy.
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SI.com, "Man City Target Spotted in Manchester & Undergoes Medical Ahead of Big-Money Transfer," 10 July 2018 In response to the Crimea annexation, NATO created a 5,000-troop spearhead force that can deploy to trouble spots within days.
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Daniel Michaels, WSJ, "NATO, Under Fire From Trump, to Trumpet Its Heightened Readiness," 6 July 2018 Pompeo, who is helping spearhead conversations ahead of a possible summit with North Korea next month, met with Kim for dinner Wednesday night.
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Kathryn Watson, CBS News, "Pompeo speaks to press after meeting with North Korea official — live updates," 31 May 2018 Weapons like spearheads, swords, shield fragments, iron knives and an axe were also uncovered.
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Doyle Rice, USA TODAY, "Ancient human bones are proof of 'barbarian' war rituals 2,000 years ago in Europe," 21 May 2018 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb Since the congestion charge, traffic has become much more predictable, according to Sweden’s Deputy Finance Minister Per Bolund, who helped spearhead the congestion zone.
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BostonGlobe.com, "Seeing red," 19 Nov. 2019 For the second game in a row, the Nuggets got an engaged, energetic Jokic to help spearhead the win.
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Mike Singer, The Denver Post, "Nikola Jokic hits another game-winner, Nuggets avoid complete disaster," 10 Nov. 2019 Alex Lasry, the Bucks senior vice president who helped spearhead Milwaukee's bid for the convention, was named honorary finance chair.
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Bill Glauber, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Bud Selig, Sheldon Lubar, John Schlifske among honorary chairs of DNC 2020 host committee," 24 Oct. 2019 Sweden's Hives helped spearhead the garage rock revival of the early 21st century.
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David Lindquist, Indianapolis Star, "'Looking for Alaska' music: Notes and a 50-song Spotify playlist for John Green adaptation," 20 Oct. 2019 The 22-year-old is currently in his second season on loan at Bramall Lane, having joined from Manchester United last summer to help spearhead their promotion to the Premier League.
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SI.com, "Dean Henderson Handed England Call-Up Ahead of Euro 2020 Qualification Double-Header," 8 Oct. 2019 Maggiano has been spearheading that effort for nearly three years.
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Jonathan Pitts, baltimoresun.com, "In slavery, her family was owned by his. Now they attend a Baltimore church seeking to atone for its past.," 12 Sep. 2019 Pecora helped to spearhead construction plans for the village’s new $26 million police station that opened last fall.
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Elizabeth Owens-schiele, chicagotribune.com, "Pecora officially takes over as Arlington Heights police chief: ‘This community is my home as well as the people I serve’," 31 Aug. 2019 Sticka, who first joined the Recording Academy in 2014, helped spearhead the museum’s integration with the Grammy Foundation in 2017.
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Tatiana Cirisano, Billboard, "Grammy Museum Ups Michael Sticka to President, Plans Latin Music Expansion," 30 July 2019
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'spearhead.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for spearhead
spearhead
nounEnglish Language Learners Definition of spearhead
(Entry 1 of 2)
: a person, thing, or group that organizes or leads something (such as a movement or attack)
spearhead
verbEnglish Language Learners Definition of spearhead (Entry 2 of 2)
: to be the leader of (something, such as a political movement)
See the full definition for spearhead in the English Language Learners Dictionary
spearhead
nounspear·head | \ ˈspir-ˌhed \
\Kids Definition of spearhead
(Entry 1 of 2)
1 : the head or point of a spear
2 : the person, thing, or group that is the leading force (as in a development or an attack)
spearhead
verbspearheaded; spearheading
Kids Definition of spearhead (Entry 2 of 2)
: to serve as leader of
She spearheaded a campaign for change.
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Time Traveler for spearhead
The first known use of spearhead was in the 14th century
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