Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Springboard \Spring"board`\, 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.

Source : WordNet®

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: {jumping-off point}, {point
        of departure}]