break new ground
(redirected from broke new ground)Also found in: Dictionary, Thesaurus, Medical, Legal, Financial, Encyclopedia.
Related to broke new ground: broken ground, break new ground
break new ground
To innovate. They've really broken new ground with their latest product—I've never seen anything like it.
break new ground
Fig. to begin to do something that no one else has done; to pioneer [in an enterprise]. Dr. Anderson was breaking new ground in cancer research. They were breaking new ground in consumer electronics.
break new ground
COMMON If someone breaks new ground, they make progress by doing something completely different. The programme broke new ground, in giving to women roles traditionally assigned to men. They're trying to break new ground, make a new kind of cinema. Note: You can also use ground-breaking before a noun. He was given an award for his ground-breaking work in the field. She wrote a ground-breaking book on the subject. Note: You use these expressions to show approval.
break new (or fresh) ground
do something innovative which is considered an advance or positive benefit.Literally, to break new ground is to do preparatory digging or other work prior to building or planting something. In North America the idiom is break ground .
break fresh/new ˈground
make a discovery; use new methods, etc: We’re breaking fresh ground with our new freezing methods. ▶ ˈground-breaking adj.: a ground-breaking discovery/reportbreak new ground
To advance beyond previous achievements: broke new ground in the field of computers.