Definition of vanguard
1 : the forefront of an action or movement
2 : the troops moving at the head of an army
Read the Latest from M-W
vanguard was our Word of the Day on 01/22/2017. Hear the podcast!
Theme music by Joshua Stamper ©2006 New Jerusalem Music/ASCAP
Examples of vanguard in a Sentence
a style of jazz that the vanguard quickly recognized as new and exciting
talk radio is often regarded as being in the vanguard of the conservative movement
Recent Examples of vanguard from the Web
-
The vanguard of regulatory action is Europe, where national capitals and the EC, the European Union’s executive arm, are putting the screws to U.S. tech firms.
-
For a military that has been at the vanguard of some of the nation’s most important transformations—
-
A vanguard of digital payment providers was well-positioned for the shift.
-
The collection explores the rise of modern and contemporary art in New Orleans, including experimental works by local artists as well as vanguard works made all across the country.
-
And while there may be a global effort under the Paris agreement to reduce emissions, that certainly has not stopped the international race for Arctic oil. Norway is in the vanguard of that scramble, trailed by Russia, Canada and the United States.
-
But that’s a pretty old-school view of a town that’s become a dining vanguard over the last few decades.
-
Audi’s, BMW’s, and Mercedes’ largest cars remain totems of brand values and stylistic themes, as well as vanguards for the technologies that trickle down to the rest of the fleet.
-
The Chicago market is at the vanguard of Target's line of attack.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'vanguard.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
VANGUARD Defined for English Language Learners
vanguard
playDefinition of vanguard for English Language Learners
-
: the group of people who are the leaders of an action or movement in society, politics, art, etc.
-
the vanguard : the soldiers, ships, etc., that are at the front of a fighting force that is moving forward
VANGUARD Defined for Kids
Learn More about vanguard
-
See words that rhyme with vanguard Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for vanguard Spanish Central: Translation of vanguard Nglish: Translation of vanguard for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of vanguard for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about vanguard
Seen and Heard
What made you want to look up vanguard? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).
Writing? Check your grammar now!