vanguard
Definitions
The leaders of a movement, trend, or new development; the forefront
（运动、潮流的）先锋，先驱，前列
The foremost part of an advancing army or fleet
（军队的）前锋，先头部队
Root Breakdown
Root-derivedFrom French avant-garde, "the advance guard." The "van" is a clipping of avant (front) — not the vehicle. So vanguard literally means "the guard at the front": the lead troops, and by extension whoever leads a movement.
Root guard still carries 5 more wordsWhy It Means This
Vanguard answers a question many learners have: where's the "van"? It isn't a van at all. The word is French avant-garde squeezed into English — avant (front) + garde (guard). The military "front guard" became a metaphor for being ahead of everyone else, which is also why cutting-edge art is called avant-garde.
Common Collocations
- 1.in the vanguard处于前列
- 2.the vanguard of……的先锋
- 3.lead the vanguard引领先锋
- 4.vanguard of change变革的先锋
Example Sentences
- 1.
The company is in the vanguard of electric car technology.
- 2.
These artists were the vanguard of a new movement.
- 3.
The vanguard of the army reached the city before dawn.