pioneer: Meaning and Definition of
pi•o•neer
Pronunciation: (pī"u-nēr'), [key] — n.
- a person who is among those who first enter or settle a region, thus opening it for occupation and development by others.
- one who is first or among the earliest in any field of inquiry, enterprise, or progress: pioneers in cancer research.
- one of a group of foot soldiers detailed to make roads, dig intrenchments, etc., in advance of the main body.
- an organism that successfully establishes itself in a barren area, thus starting an ecological cycle of life.
- (cap.)one of a series of U.S. space probes that explored the solar system and transmitted scientific information to earth.
- (cap.) (formerly) a member of a Communist organization in the Soviet Union for children ranging in age from 10 to 16. Cf.
—v.i. - to act as a pioneer.
—v.t. - to be the first to open or prepare (a way, settlement, etc.).
- to take part in the beginnings of; initiate: to pioneer an aid program.
- to lead the way for (a group); guide.
—adj. - being the earliest, original, first of a particular kind, etc.: a pioneer method of adult education.
- of, pertaining to, or characteristic of pioneers: pioneer justice.
- being a pioneer: a pioneer fur trader.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.