as in pad
an area from which a rocket is launched
—often used figuratively
The TV cameras were focused on the launchpad as the time for liftoff approached. The program she hosted on local radio was the launchpad for her network career.
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Recent Examples of launchpad
This month starts a period of meeting and events that serve as a launchpad for the year’s final event, COP30 this November in Belém, Brazil.
—
Monica Sanders, Forbes.com, 22 May 2025
Quietly defiant and proudly independent, the German festival has built a reputation over three decades as a launchpad for boundary-pushing cinema.
—Kevin Cassidy, HollywoodReporter, 12 May 2025
For years, South Dakota has been the launchpad for anti-LGBTQ+ legislation.
—Kate Sosin, Them., 8 May 2025
Now boasting over 200 events and participants from nearly 100 countries, MIFA is a launchpad for emerging voices and a place where new projects, like those from Bangladesh, Vietnam and Costa Rica, can find global partners.
—Jamie Lang, Variety, 23 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for launchpad
Monica Sanders, Forbes.com, 22 May 2025
Quietly defiant and proudly independent, the German festival has built a reputation over three decades as a launchpad for boundary-pushing cinema.
—Kevin Cassidy, HollywoodReporter, 12 May 2025
For years, South Dakota has been the launchpad for anti-LGBTQ+ legislation.
—Kate Sosin, Them., 8 May 2025
Now boasting over 200 events and participants from nearly 100 countries, MIFA is a launchpad for emerging voices and a place where new projects, like those from Bangladesh, Vietnam and Costa Rica, can find global partners.
—Jamie Lang, Variety, 23 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for launchpad
Recent Examples of Synonyms for launchpad
Noun
-
This spring the annual employer survey from the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) found that finance, insurance, and real estate companies – among the largest launching pads – were planning to hire 14.5% fewer new grads.—
Ryan Craig,
Forbes.com,
13 June 2025
-
The other would be at KSC’s Launch Complex 39-A, where SpaceX already has a pad for Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy launches.—
Richard Tribou,
The Orlando Sentinel,
12 June 2025
Noun
-
When Stephen Colbert landed in New Zealand in 2019, his ride from the airport was Jacinda Ardern, the Prime Minister.—
Andrew Marantz,
New Yorker,
9 June 2025
-
The culmination of six years of R&D and testing, each aircraft is designed to transport up to five passengers plus a pilot on short hops between airports – though the eVTOL can also include vertiports in its air mobility mix.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
7 June 2025
Noun
-
Ukraine deployed first-person view, or FPV drones, in its attack on the Russian airfields.—
Tom Vanden Brook,
USA Today,
8 June 2025
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Russia conducted its second-largest missile and drone attack on Ukraine since the start of its invasion in 2022, according to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) whose graph illustrate the response to Kyiv's drone barrage on Russian military airfields.—
Brendan Cole,
MSNBC Newsweek,
7 June 2025
Noun
-
Ukraine begged former President Joe Biden and German leaders to no avail to provide long-range missiles that could hit distant Russian aerodromes and eliminate strategic bombers at the source.—
Trudy Rubin,
Twin Cities,
8 June 2025
-
Ukraine begged former President Joe Biden and German leaders to no avail to provide long range missiles that could hit distant Russian aerodromes and eliminate strategic bombers at the source.—
Trudy Rubin,
Mercury News,
7 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Launchpad.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/launchpad. Accessed 17 Jun. 2025.
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