the.com/vanguard
The front of the army that finds out where the landmines are.
means The leading position in a movement, field, or trend — the people or ideas pushing furthest ahead of everyone else.
from From Old French 'avant-garde,' literally 'fore-guard' — avant (before) plus garde (guard). It entered English through military use describing the troops who marched ahead of the main force, then drifted into general metaphor for anyone out front in politics, art, or ideas. The art-world cousin 'avant-garde' kept the French spelling; 'vanguard' is the older, more anglicized half of the same split.
- origin
- French avant-garde, literally advance guard
- risk
- first to meet the enemy, first to retreat
- irony
- now means a boring index fund company
- usage
- everyone claims it, few actually lead