HEAD START Definition & Meaning

View synonyms for

head start

Or headstart

noun

an advantage given or acquired in any competition, endeavor, etc., as allowing one or more competitors in a race to start before the others.

head start

noun

an initial advantage in a competitive situation

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51�Թ� History and Origins

Origin of head start¹

First recorded in 1885–90

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51�Թ� History and Origins

Origin of head start¹

originally referring to a horse's having its head in front of others at the start of a race

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Idioms and Phrases

An early start that confers an advantage, as in This year we'll get a head start on the competition by running more ads. The expression comes from racing, where it was used for a horse being given an advantage of several lengths over the others. Its extension to other areas dates from the early 1900s.

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

Previously, “Day Zero” has always been an extra day for campers to get settled and get a head start on partying.

From

It’s like a game of musical chairs where you keep adding players, but not seats, and you give a head start based on wealth.

From

The tips were about active investigations, which prosecutors said enabled the lawyer to get a head start on wooing the targets as clients.

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In the end, the head start Verstappen established in the first five races of the year was too much.

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So I got a little head start on that, just immersing myself in that world.

From

headstand head station

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