I asked [this question][1] on EL&U and got some good answers, but tend to accept [this answer][2].

IMHO *Visionary* doesn't really match *Vordenker* ("Wer Visionen hat, sollte zum Arzt gehen" Helmut Schmidt), *Mastermind* is much weaker than *Vordenker*. Maybe I explained *Vordenker* not well enough, but this is hard as the meaning in English seems not to exist according to Wikipedia results. It's often used in a biographical and historical context and user phenry seems spot on here, it simply doesn't exist in English.

I'm asking here, because I want a feedback, how above terms in the title are understood actually by most Germans. Are they basically synonyms? What's next to *Vordenker*? What are the nuances between my current favorites *Pionier* and *Vorreiter* esp. when judging the historical influence and importance of a single person in retrospect?

You can give a own english translation of *Vordenker* as a side note or better just vote the available on EL&U, but that's not the question here. **Answers in English please and vote for best synonym.**


  [1]: https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/40085/english-term-for-pre-thinker
  [2]: https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/40085/english-term-for-pre-thinker/40092#40092