a·vant-garde / ˈavänt ˈgärd; ˌavän/ • n. (usu. the avant-garde) new and unusual or experimental ideas, esp. in the arts, or the people introducing them: works by artists of the Russian avant-garde. • adj. favoring or introducing such new ideas: a controversial avant-garde composer. DERIVATIVES: a·vant-gard·ism / -ˌdizəm/ n. a·vant-gard·ist / -dist/ n.

avant-garde Term applied to innovators in the arts, particularly those whose artistic audacity surprises their contemporaries. The word comes from the French for “advance guard”, deriving from the military concept for “vanguard”, and has radical political overtones.

avant-garde (Fr. ‘vanguard’). Term used in the arts to denote those who make a radical departure from tradition. In 20th-cent. mus., Stockhausen may be regarded as avant-garde, but not Shostakovich.

AVANT-GARDE.

This entry includes two subentries:

avant-garde •Assad, aubade, avant-garde, backyard, ballade, bard, Bernard, bombard, canard, card, charade, chard, couvade, croustade, Cunard, facade, glissade, guard, hard, ill-starred, interlard, lard, Montagnard, nard, pard, petard, pomade, promenade, regard, retard, rodomontade, roulade, saccade, Sade, salade, sard, shard, unmarred, unscarred, yard •Bayard • galliard • Savoyard •Svalbard •bombarde, Lombard •Goddard • blackguard • vanguard •Asgard • safeguard • Midgard •bodyguard • lifeguard • Bogarde •coastguard • mudguard • rearguard •fireguard • Kierkegaard • diehard •blowhard •Jacquard, placard •flashcard • railcard • racecard • Picard •scorecard • showcard • phonecard •Ballard, mallard •Willard • Abelard • bollard • Barnard •Maynard, reynard •communard • Oudenarde • Stoppard •Gerard • Everard • brassard •Hansard, mansard •Trenchard • Ostade • leotard •boulevard • scrapyard • farmyard •barnyard • graveyard • brickyard •shipyard •dockyard, stockyard •foreyard • courtyard • boatyard •woodyard • junkyard • churchyard