breakthrough

• breakthru (US, nonstandard)

From break +‎ through. Compare German Durchbruch and Dutch doorbraak (“breakthrough”, literally “through-break”).

• IPA^(key): /ˈbɹeɪkθɹuː/

• Audio (US)

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breakthrough (not comparable)

1. Characterized by major progress or overcoming some obstacle.

   a breakthrough technological advance

breakthrough (plural breakthroughs)

1. (military) 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. (sports) The penetration of the opposition defence
   • 2011 September 29, Jon Smith, “Tottenham 3 - 1 Shamrock Rovers”, in BBC Sport‎:

     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.

4. (construction) 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; knockthrough.

• breakthrough pain