trendsetter
noun
trend·set·ter
ˈtren(d)-ˌse-tər 
variants
or less commonly trend-setter
plural trendsetters also trend-setters
: one that sets a trend : someone or something that starts or helps to popularize a new fashion, style, movement, etc.
a trendsetter in the fashion industry
Every ten years or so, for a different set of reasons each time, cultural trendsetters rally behind one musician with whom they sense a bond and who then comes to symbolize jazz to the mass media.—
Francis Davis
Francis DavisThe county has become a trendsetter in other types of environmental legislation …—Chemical & Engineering News
Chemical & Engineering NewsExamples of trendsetter in a Sentence
a closely watched trendsetter in women's fashions
Recent Examples on the Web
Aside from Larsson, other trendsetters are joining in on the trend, attaching chains, keychains and other baubles to their jeans.
—Andre Claudio, Sourcing Journal, 31 Oct. 2025
The square nail—once considered a holdover from suburban nail salons—has regained popularity in a variety of lengths after beauty trendsetters like Kendall Jenner and Cynthia Erivo sported the look.
—María Munsuri, Vogue, 29 Oct. 2025
Today, all the big movies open during the summertime, but Jaws was the trendsetter.
—Steven Thrash, Entertainment Weekly, 24 Oct. 2025
Many items originally featured in the 1925 Paris showcase, which cemented the French capital’s reputation as the trendsetter for modern decorative arts, though the design movement originated a decade earlier and the term Art Deco wasn’t coined until much later.
—Joelle Diderich, Footwear News, 20 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for trendsetter
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Andre Claudio, Sourcing Journal, 31 Oct. 2025
The square nail—once considered a holdover from suburban nail salons—has regained popularity in a variety of lengths after beauty trendsetters like Kendall Jenner and Cynthia Erivo sported the look.
—María Munsuri, Vogue, 29 Oct. 2025
Today, all the big movies open during the summertime, but Jaws was the trendsetter.
—Steven Thrash, Entertainment Weekly, 24 Oct. 2025
Many items originally featured in the 1925 Paris showcase, which cemented the French capital’s reputation as the trendsetter for modern decorative arts, though the design movement originated a decade earlier and the term Art Deco wasn’t coined until much later.
—Joelle Diderich, Footwear News, 20 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for trendsetter
Cite this Entry
“Trendsetter.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/trendsetter. Accessed 6 Nov. 2025.
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