breakthroughs

Noun

breakthrough (plural breakthroughs)

1. An advance through and past enemy lines.
2. Any major progress; such as a great innovation or discovery that overcomes a significant obstacle.
   • Albert Einstein is credited with making some of the greatest breakthroughs in modern physics.
3. The penetration of the opposition's defence.
   • But with the lively Dos Santos pulling the strings behind strikers Pavlyuchenko and Defoe, Spurs controlled the first half without finding the breakthrough their dominance deserved.2011 September 29, Jon Smith, “Tottenham 3 - 1 Shamrock Rovers”, in BBC Sport, archived from the original on 08 Dec 2022
4. The penetration of a separating wall or the remaining distance to an adjacent hollow (a crosscut in mining) or between two parts of a tunnel build from both ends.

   Synonyms:

   knockthrough

5. (attributive, sometimes) The emergence or one or more symptoms of a condition despite medication or other medical treatment.
   • She was on two antiepileptics for five years but then had a breakthrough seizure.

See all 7 meanings of breakthrough