stepping-stone

NOUN

instrumentation

Synonyms

STRONGEST

apparatus instrument

STRONG

agency agent aid auspices avenue channel course dodge equipment expedient factor fashion gimmick instrumentality intermediary machinery manner measure mechanism medium ministry mode organ organization paraphernalia path power process road route step system tactic technique trick vehicle

WEAK

modus operandi ways and means

Antonyms

STRONG

blockage disorganization ignorance

NOUN

means

Synonyms

STRONGEST

aid channel equipment factor instrument measure mechanism medium mode power process route step system tactic technique vehicle

STRONG

agency agent apparatus auspices avenue course dodge expedient fashion gimmick instrumentality instrumentation intermediary machinery manner ministry organ organization paraphernalia path road trick

WEAK

modus operandi ways and means

Antonyms

STRONGEST

end

WEAK

paucity poorness shame

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Whale falls are "almost like islands," De Leo explains, calling them "a stepping-stone habitat for this and many other whale bone specialist species."

From Science Daily • Dec. 28, 2025

Some aspiring emigrants suggest that these days, even getting tourist visas — seen as a stepping-stone to emigration — has become a challenge for Turks.

From Seattle Times • Nov. 8, 2023

I think everybody who has a garden can help species to create a stepping-stone so that they can move to higher latitudes.

From Scientific American • Jul. 5, 2022

“Me getting that exposure, me getting my foot in the door, was the stepping-stone for me to get into the NFL,” he said of the internship program.

From Los Angeles Times • May 26, 2022

“No, it is a stepping-stone on the way to America,” Papa Andrew explained.

From "Taking Flight: From War Orphan to Star Ballerina" by Michaela DePrince

stepping-stone

Example Sentences

Related Words