What does leapfrogging mean?
Leapfrogging describes taking turns moving ahead by jumping over or surpassing others. In its literal sense, people leapfrog as a game, with one participant jumping over another and then taking a turn crouching. Figuratively, the word describes competition or development in which one person, company, or technology temporarily gets ahead of rivals and later falls behind again. It can also carry the more specific idea of advancing by bypassing an intermediate stage or established competitor. The term is common in political, commercial, and technological writing, where it conveys rapid, opportunistic progress: a firm is leapfrogging its rivals by introducing a product before they have matched it. Because the image involves alternating positions, leapfrogging often implies that leadership is temporary or repeatedly changing rather than fixed.
verb (present participle and gerund)To move forward in turn by jumping over another person, or figuratively to advance by passing or bypassing others in stages. It can also describe alternating progress in which one party temporarily surpasses another before falling behind again.
- To jump over someone in turn as part of a game.
- To move ahead of others by bypassing or surpassing them.
- To make alternating progress, with different parties taking the lead at different times.
"The company continued leapfrogging its competitors by releasing new products ahead of the market."
"The children were leapfrogging along the garden path."
"As costs fell rapidly, the manufacturer kept leapfrogging its European competitors."
Leapfrogging turns an old children's game into a sharp metaphor for competition: one runner does not always stay ahead, but the strategy depends on repeatedly moving to the front.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does leapfrogging come from?
The compound is formed from the familiar words “leap” and “frog,” combining the action of jumping with the crouching position required by the children's game. “Leap” continues Old English hleapan, while “frog” comes from Old English frogga. The compound has been attested since the early modern period, long before it acquired its current figurative meanings about alternating or accelerated progress.
Related word forms
How leapfrogging is actually used
In its figurative use, the word often implies repeated, alternating advantage rather than permanent leadership. It is especially common in political, economic, and technological contexts and can suggest bypassing the normal order of advancement.