Skip to content
GREMockTests
GRE vocabulary

seminal

adjectiveHigh-frequency wordMore S words

strongly influencing later developments; foundational

Word origin: From Latin semen, seed.

Start a free GRE mock test 39 minutes · free · instant score
In a sentence

Seminal in a sentence

Here are example sentences showing seminal in a sentence.

Her seminal paper reshaped the entire field of genetics.

Her seminal paper on the topic reshaped the field and is still cited in nearly every survey of the literature.

Synonyms
formativegroundbreakinginfluential

Quick GRE check

Question 1 of 3

3 questions, about 2 minutes. How would you do on the real test?

Verbal · Text Completion

Although the senator's memoir was marketed as a frank reckoning with his failures, reviewers found it relentlessly blank, dwelling on grievances and recasting every setback as the fault of his adversaries.

Select the word that best completes the sentence.

Usage & nuance

Using “seminal” well

Seminal means foundational, strongly influencing later developments. A seminal work is one from which much subsequent thought grows, so the word praises originative importance, not just quality.

Common questions

Questions about “seminal”

Seminal (adjective) means strongly influencing later developments; foundational
Here is seminal used in an example sentence: "Her seminal paper reshaped the entire field of genetics." Another example: "Her seminal paper on the topic reshaped the field and is still cited in nearly every survey of the literature."
Common synonyms for seminal include formative, groundbreaking, influential.
Antonyms of seminal include derivative, trivial.
Clusters with formative, groundbreaking, and influential in Sentence Equivalence. Its antonyms derivative and trivial mark the opposite, unoriginal or unimportant pole.
Yes. Seminal is a high-frequency GRE word, so it is worth prioritising as you build your vocabulary.

See these words the way the GRE tests them.

Take the free 39-minute GRE Quick Mock Test and meet words like this inside real Text Completion and Sentence Equivalence questions, with a worked solution for every answer.