1
Historic turning point
An event that causes an important and lasting change in political or social history.
Example
The election proved to be a watershed in the country's political history.
watershed
/ˈwɔːtəʃed/ · WAW-tuh-shednoun
An event or period marking a major turning point.
Use watershed for a discovery, decision, event, or era that clearly divides what came before from what followed.
What watershed Really Means
The word becomes easier to use when its closely related senses are separated and compared.
2
Transformative discovery
A breakthrough that redirects the development of science, medicine, or technology.
Example
The discovery of penicillin marked a watershed in the treatment of bacterial disease.
3
Dividing period
A stage that separates two recognisably different phases of development.
Example
The decade became a watershed between small-scale production and industrial manufacturing.
Use watershed Naturally
Notice how the surrounding noun or clause reveals the exact shade of meaning.
The election proved to be a watershed in the country's political history.
The discovery marked a watershed in the treatment of infectious disease.
Historians regard the agreement as a watershed moment in regional cooperation.
Precision Matters
Watershed overlaps with several common words, but each carries a different emphasis.
watershed
vs.Often suggests broad historical or institutional consequences.
turning point
The general term for a time when direction changes.
watershed
vs.Changes the direction of later development.
milestone
Marks important progress without necessarily redirecting what follows.
watershed
vs.Names the larger dividing event or period.
breakthrough
Names a sudden advance or successful solution to a problem.
watershed
vs.Functions as a noun for the turning point itself.
momentous
Is an adjective describing something highly consequential.
Test watershed in Context
The discovery permanently divided medical history into a before and an after.
1
The discovery of penicillin marked a ___ in medicine: infections that had routinely proved fatal could now be treated effectively.