1.
2.
[syn: springboard, jumping-off point, point of departure]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:
Springboard \Spring"board`\ (-b[=o]rd`), n.
An elastic board, secured at the ends, or at one end, often
by elastic supports, used in performing feats of agility or
in exercising.
[1913 Webster] Springbok
WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):
springboard
n 1: a flexible board for jumping upward
2: a beginning from which an enterprise is launched; "he uses
other people's ideas as a springboard for his own"; "reality
provides the jumping-off point for his illusions"; "the point
of departure of international comparison cannot be an
institution but must be the function it carries out" [syn:
springboard, jumping-off point, point of departure]
Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0:
19 Moby Thesaurus words for "springboard":
Lastex, baleen, battledore, chewing gum, elastic, elastomer, gum,
gum elastic, handball, jumping jack, racket, rubber, rubber ball,
rubber band, spandex, spring, stretch fabric, trampoline,
whalebone