Skip to main content
seminally

seminally

8.1
In a way that helps shape later ideas or events
  • adverb
  • /ˈsɛmɪnəli/
  • Formal
translation icon : fundamentalmente
  • Her research was seminally influential in the field of genetics, paving the way for many subsequent discoveries.

Examples

  • "24 Hours" is also the name of a song by the seminally bleak British post-punk band Joy Division (later to become the arguably even more influential dance-rock band New Order, after the epileptic and depressive original singer's suicide).

    Blog text (30)
  • Now the captain's son is off to be Harrowed, while the bastard twins in whose lives young Hoel invested so seminally have been shipped off to the Aunt Tillies.

    Fiction book (2001)
  • The artist's seminally innovative style changed the landscape of contemporary art and inspired countless future creators.

  • This book presents seminally important ideas that have shaped modern philosophy and continue to be discussed today.

Synonyms

formatively
vsseminally
6.3

In a way that helps shape how something develops early on

focuses on strong influence on later developments rather than early shaping
paradigmatically
vsseminally
  • Formal
9.3

Acting as a clear model for others to follow

acts by strongly influencing later developments rather than only being a model
influentially
vsseminally
6.0

In a way that makes people change their ideas or actions

is more about long term influence on later developments and ideas
pivotally
vsseminally
6.3

Very important for the way something turns out

emphasizes lasting influence on later developments and ideas rather than central importance

Surface Forms

seminally positive

Morphology

seminally = seminal (semi-transparent) = seminal + ly

Formally derived from 'seminal' + '-ly', but the adjective's figurative meaning ('influential') is metaphorical and may not be obvious from the literal 'semen'-related sense to all learners.

Etymology

Seminally comes from the Latin semen 'seed'. Think of an idea planted like a 'seed' that grows into later work, so when something is seminally important it strongly helps shape what comes after.