FRONTIER Synonyms: 38 Similar and Opposite Words

frontier 1 of 2

noun

ˌfrən-ˈtir

Definition of frontier

as in border

a region along the dividing line between two countries the Apaches were once feared on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico frontier

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

as in countryside

a rural region that forms the edge of the settled or developed part of a country Alaska has been called America's last frontier

Synonyms & Similar Words

frontier

2 of 2

adjective

as in marginal

located at or near a border a frontier town with a reputation for vice and lawlessness

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of frontier

Noun

Meta announced its most powerful AI model to date, Muse Wonder, which CEO Mark Zuckerberg told the Financial Times showed that Meta had caught up to frontier. — Jeremy Kahn, Fortune, 13 Oct. 2026 ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, Perplexity and other frontier models distill information about a company from their own content as well as news coverage, analyst reports, review sites and communities such as Reddit. — Lora Kratchounova, Forbes.com, 13 Oct. 2026

Adjective

That worried Huang, who fears a Chinese rival, and White House officials, who believe Chinese dependence on non-frontier American chips is the best way to ensure a lead in AI. — Charlie Campbell, Time, 11 Dec. 2025 See All Example Sentences for frontier

Recent Examples of Synonyms for frontier

Noun

Ukrainian drones killed a woman in a Russian border region and disrupted flights at Moscow's airports, according to Russian authorities.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 18 Oct. 2026
His income will be augmented by a deal to help control Haiti’s porous border with the Dominican Republic for the next 10 years in return for 10% of any new customs revenue collected.

— Nick Paton Walsh, CNN Money, 17 Oct. 2026

Definition of border

Noun

Another theory is that with the fall harvest nearly complete, now is a relatively safe time to deport farmworkers in the countryside without immediately worrying about empty shelves in supermarkets, Mejia said.

— Jack Dolan, Los Angeles Times, 16 Oct. 2026
Oakley, who previously directed the 2022 drama Blue Jean, has a deft touch with the material and a deep respect for the English countryside setting.

— Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of countryside

Adjective

The main concern is damaging wind gusts, but the latest outlook also indicates a marginal possibility of a brief tornado, particularly near the Delaware River Valley and Delmarva.

— Bill Kelly, CBS News, 15 Oct. 2026
Chasing cost cuts and marginal revenue bumps is an outdated model for running a professional creative services company.

— Fernando Bergás-Coria, Forbes.com, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of marginal

Noun

The 20 countries at greatest risk of a worsening humanitarian crisis, ranked by the International Rescue Committee (IRC) annually in our Emergency Watchlist, represent just 12% of the global population, but 90% of those in humanitarian need.

— David Miliband, Time, 19 Oct. 2026
Many other countries and even continents would kill to have this level of ingenuity on their shores.

— Sarah Cannon, Fortune, 18 Oct. 2026

Definition of country

Noun

Navigate the biodiverse backwaters of Choctawhatchee Bay or visit Destin, the perfect beach town for kiteboarding and snorkeling.

— Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 23 Sep. 2026
No one predicted the sleepy backwater of Sassnitz would be rebranded ‘Crashnitz’ or ‘Smashnitz’ by the end of the first edition of the German Sail Grand Prix last year.

— Andrew Rice, New York Times, 20 Aug. 2026

Definition of backwater

Noun

Just before dusk, four or five does walked under the tree, and then a four-point buck followed, stopping beneath me to rub his antlers on a bush.

— Al Dawson, Outdoor Life, 15 Oct. 2026
Tortoises routinely seek shade under dense bushes, vanish into mangroves, or shelter from the scorching equatorial sun.

— Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 10 Oct. 2026

Definition of bush

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fronted

frontier

frontiers

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Style

“Frontier.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/frontier. Accessed 21 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of frontier

noun

adjective

Example Sentences

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