blueprint

noun

blue·​print ˈblü-ˌprint How to pronounce blueprint (audio)
plural blueprints
1
: a photographic print in white on a bright blue ground or blue on a white ground used especially for copying maps, mechanical drawings, and architects' plans
2
: something or someone resembling a blueprint (as in serving as a model or providing guidance)
… few foundations have taken a similar [investing] route, so there was no blueprint to follow.Paul Sullivan
He was an anomaly to the rap world when he arrived, but today he is the blueprint for a generation.Jeff Ihaza
especially : a detailed plan or program of action
a blueprint for success
blueprint transitive verb
blueprinted; blueprinting; blueprints
It was not something blueprinted from the start or based on a French bistro archetype; it's a restaurant that has grown and evolved … Ian McNulty

Examples of blueprint in a Sentence

a blueprint for reforming the public school system an ambitious young man with a remarkably detailed blueprint for becoming a millionaire by the age of 25
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Trump has disavowed the 900-page blueprint for reorganizing swaths of politics and society along hard-right lines, despite some of his former aides’ involvement in writing it. Alexander Smith, NBC News, 8 Nov. 2024 Read More: America's Border Wall Is Bipartisan Over the next decades, other states used Prop 187 as a blueprint, recognizing that even if the laws were struck down, the process of galvanizing support for anti-immigrant measures could be politically useful. Eladio B. Bobadilla / Made By History, TIME, 5 Nov. 2024 One of the lead architects of four NBA championship teams wanted to see the modern blueprint for building a winner in the college game. Ben Bolch, Los Angeles Times, 3 Nov. 2024 Critics reply by citing Project 2025, a potential blueprint for a second Trump presidency that proposes deep cuts to the social safety net for lower-income families alongside more large tax breaks for the wealthy. Eli Hager, ProPublica, 2 Nov. 2024 See all Example Sentences for blueprint 

Word History

First Known Use

1857, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of blueprint was in 1857

Dictionary Entries Near blueprint

Cite this Entry

“Blueprint.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/blueprint. Accessed 23 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

blueprint

1 of 2 noun
blue·​print
ˈblü-ˌprint
1
: a photographic print made with white lines on a blue background and used especially for copying mechanical drawings, maps, and architects' plans
2
: a detailed plan or program of action

blueprint

2 of 2 verb
: to make a blueprint of or for

More from Merriam-Webster on blueprint

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!