as in marginal
located at or near a border
a frontier town with a reputation for vice and lawlessness
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in border
a region along the dividing line between two countries
the Apaches were once feared on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico frontier
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in countryside
a rural region that forms the edge of the settled or developed part of a country
Alaska has been called America's last frontier
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of frontier
Charlie Campbell, Time, 11 Dec. 2025
Michael Bloom, CNBC, 10 Apr. 2026
Already, Israeli strikes near Iran’s eastern frontier are fomenting instability in Pakistan’s restive province of Balochistan.
—Charlie Campbell, Time, 9 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for frontier
Adjective
That worried Huang, who fears a Chinese rival, and White House officials, who believe Chinese dependence on non-frontier American chips is the best way to ensure a lead in AI.
—Charlie Campbell, Time, 11 Dec. 2025
Noun
While not yet at the frontier, the scaffolding is in place for Meta t o make another historic run, this time in AI.
—Michael Bloom, CNBC, 10 Apr. 2026
Already, Israeli strikes near Iran’s eastern frontier are fomenting instability in Pakistan’s restive province of Balochistan.
—Charlie Campbell, Time, 9 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for frontier
Recent Examples of Synonyms for frontier
Adjective
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Moreover, technology profits are expected to grow 45% this year, yet the sector has seen only a marginal gain this year.—
Jeff Cox,
CNBC,
13 Apr. 2026
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For companies with binding clean energy commitments, this is not a marginal concern.—
Pandu Sjahrir,
Fortune,
11 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Hungarians living near the southern frontier, where Orbán made a show of building a border fence during the refugee crisis, are travelling to Croatia to buy cheap groceries.—
Kapil Komireddi,
New Yorker,
10 Apr. 2026
-
Under the leadership of former CEOs, including the late Thomas Storrs and Hugh McColl, Gentry was part of a team that expanded the bank far beyond North Carolina’s border.—
Chase Jordan
April 9,
Charlotte Observer,
9 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Hungary lives in the countryside—only eight cities have a population exceeding a hundred thousand people—and that is where Magyar concentrated his attention.—
Kapil Komireddi,
New Yorker,
10 Apr. 2026
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Now legions of bright-eyed radical youths were exiled to the countryside to learn from the peasants.—
Michael Sheridan,
Vanity Fair,
8 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Perhaps as a result, various European countries had introduced academic programs in the new field of music geragogy—the study of music-learning in old age.—
Tim Parks,
New Yorker,
11 Apr. 2026
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Plus, targets in countries where people generally make lower incomes may be less likely to turn down job offers.—
Jessica Klein,
PC Magazine,
11 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Gold transformed Victoria from a pastoral backwater into the most celebrated colony of the empire.—
Britannica Editors,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
19 Mar. 2026
-
At that time, in the 1920s, France was really a backwater in theoretical physics.—
Tim Folger,
Scientific American,
16 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Moreover, as soon as Christianity began to spread outside his native land, Christian converts faced new situations in unexpected contexts, completely different from those of their founder, an itinerant Jewish preacher in the sparsely populated hinterlands of rural Galilee.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
26 Mar. 2026
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Scattered across the continent were hundreds of towns populated by a few hundred people, and each of these towns had an economic hinterland of perhaps 50 to 100 square miles, with the bulk of all agricultural and household production produced and remaining in that area.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
25 Mar. 2026
Noun
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To access a plethora of mountainous backcountry trails, go east.—
Lydia Mansel,
Travel + Leisure,
9 Apr. 2026
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When two campers in the Colorado backcountry thought they were being stalked by a mountain lion last week, Clear Creek County deputies decided to mount a rescue themselves.—
Christa Swanson,
CBS News,
7 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Blueberry wallpaper was placed in master bathroom as an homage to the blueberry bushes outside their home.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
12 Apr. 2026
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Along with the daffodil patch, Shickasheen also has a gift shop, a tool shed and a garden center with annuals, perennials, shrubs and bushes available for purchase.—
Catherine Messier,
The Providence Journal,
11 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Frontier.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/frontier. Accessed 14 Apr. 2026.
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