Phrase guide

state of the art

adj · noun · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

adj

Meaning 1

At the highest level of development at a particular time; cutting-edge.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • state-of-the-art technology

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

The condition of scientific or technical knowledge, particularly the peak or highest level thereof, at a particular time.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: SOTA

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

the highest degree of development of an art or technique at a particular time

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • the state of the art in space travel

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: degree, level, stage, point

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Across languages

Translations

56 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Catalan: capdavanter — at the highest level of development
  • Chinese Mandarin: 前沿 (qiányán) — at the highest level of development
  • Chinese Mandarin: 尖端 (jiānduān) — at the highest level of development
  • Czech: nejmodernější — at the highest level of development
  • Esperanto: unuaranga — at the highest level of development
  • Esperanto: plej moderna — at the highest level of development
  • Finnish: viimeisin — at the highest level of development
  • French: dernier cri — at the highest level of development
  • French: de pointe — at the highest level of development
  • French: nec plus ultra — at the highest level of development
  • German: modernst — at the highest level of development
  • Hindi: अत्याधुनिक (atyādhunik) — at the highest level of development
  • Hungarian: legkorszerűbb — at the highest level of development
  • Italian: di ultima generazione — at the highest level of development
  • Italian: allo stato dell'arte — at the highest level of development
  • Korean: 최신 (choesin) — at the highest level of development
  • Korean: 첨단 (cheomdan) — at the highest level of development
  • Malay: canggih — at the highest level of development
  • Polish: supernowoczesny — at the highest level of development
  • Portuguese: de última tecnologia — at the highest level of development
  • Portuguese: de ponta — at the highest level of development
  • Portuguese: top de linha — at the highest level of development
  • Russian: совреме́нный (sovreménnyj) — at the highest level of development
  • Russian: нове́йший (novéjšij) — at the highest level of development
  • Russian: по после́днему сло́ву (po poslédnemu slóvu) — at the highest level of development
  • Scottish Gaelic: ùr-nodha — at the highest level of development
  • Serbo-Croatian: posljednji krik — at the highest level of development
  • Spanish: de punta — at the highest level of development
  • Spanish: puntero — at the highest level of development
  • Spanish: de última tecnología — at the highest level of development
  • Spanish: de última generación — at the highest level of development
  • Spanish: al estado del arte — at the highest level of development
  • Esperanto: plej nova furoro — highest level of development
  • Esperanto: plej nova modo — highest level of development
  • Finnish: viimeinen huuto — highest level of development
  • French: dernier cri — highest level of development
  • French: état de l'art — highest level of development
  • German: aktuelle Technik — highest level of development
  • German: Stand der Technik — highest level of development
  • Indonesian: keadaan mutakhir — highest level of development
  • Italian: stato dell'arte — highest level of development
  • Korean: 첨단 기술 (cheomdan gisul) — highest level of development
  • Korean: 기술수준 (gisulsujun) — highest level of development
  • Polish: aktualny stan wiedzy technologicznej — highest level of development
  • Portuguese: estado da arte — highest level of development
  • Portuguese: estado da técnica — highest level of development
  • Portuguese: último grito — highest level of development
  • Russian: после́днее сло́во те́хники (poslédneje slóvo téxniki) — highest level of development
  • Russian: совреме́нное положе́ние дел (sovreménnoje položénije del) — highest level of development
  • Russian: после́дний крик (poslédnij krik) — highest level of development
  • Spanish: lo último en — highest level of development
  • Spanish: lo más novedoso — highest level of development
  • Spanish: último grito — highest level of development
  • Spanish: estado del arte — highest level of development
  • Spanish: últimos avances — highest level of development
  • Swedish: sista skriket — highest level of development