frontier Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun a wilderness at the edge of a settled area of a country
    • the individualism of the frontier in Andrew Jackson's day
  2. noun an international boundary or the area (often fortified) immediately inside the boundary
  3. noun an undeveloped field of study; a topic inviting research and development
    • he worked at the frontier of brain science

WordNet

Fron"tier noun
Etymology
F. frontière, LL. frontaria. See Front.
Definitions
  1. That part of a country which fronts or faces another country or an unsettled region; the marches; the border, confine, or extreme part of a country, bordering on another country; the border of the settled and cultivated part of a country; as, the frontier of civilization.
  2. (Fort.) An outwork. Obs.
    Palisadoes, frontiers, parapets. Shak.
Fron"tier adjective
Definitions
  1. Lying on the exterior part; bordering; conterminous; as, a frontier town.
  2. Of or relating to a frontier. "Frontier experience." W. Irving.
Fron"tier intransitive verb
Definitions
  1. To constitute or form a frontier; to have a frontier; -- with on. Obs. Sir W. Temple.

Webster 1913