start

1 of 3

verb

started; starting; starts

intransitive verb

1
a
: to move suddenly and violently : spring
started angrily to his feet
b
: to react with a sudden brief involuntary movement
started when a shot rang out
2
a
: to issue with sudden force
blood starting from the wound
b
: to come into being, activity, or operation
when does the movie start
the rain started up again
3
: to protrude or seem to protrude
eyes starting from their sockets
4
: to become loosened or forced out of place
one of the planks has started
5
a
: to begin a course or journey
started toward the door
just starting out
b
: to range from a specified initial point
the rates start at $10
6
: to begin an activity or undertaking
especially : to begin work
7
: to be a participant in a game or contest
especially : to be in the starting lineup

transitive verb

1
: to cause to leave a place of concealment : flush
start a rabbit
2
archaic : startle, alarm
3
: to bring up for consideration or discussion
4
: to bring into being
start a rumor
5
: to cause to become loosened or displaced
6
: to begin the use of
start a fresh loaf of bread
7
a
: to cause to move, act, or operate
start the motor
b
: to cause to enter a game or contest
especially : to put in the starting lineup
c
: to care for or train during the early stages of growth and development
started plants
a well-started coonhound
8
: to do or experience the first stages or actions of
started studying music at the age of five

start

2 of 3

noun

1
a
: a sudden involuntary bodily movement or reaction
woke with a start
b
: a brief and sudden action or movement
c
: a sudden capricious impulse or outburst
2
: a beginning of movement, activity, or development
a false start
housing starts
3
4
: a place of beginning
5
: the act or an instance of being a competitor in a race or a member of a starting lineup in a game
undefeated in six startsCurrent Biography

START

3 of 3

abbreviation

strategic arms reduction talks
Phrases
start something or less commonly start anything
: to make trouble
always trying to start something
don't start anything
to start with
1
: at the beginning : initially
2
: in any event
Choose the Right Synonym for start

begin, commence, start, initiate, inaugurate, usher in mean to take the first step in a course, process, or operation.

begin, start, and commence are often interchangeable.

begin, opposed to end, is the most general.

begin a trip
began dancing

start, opposed to stop, applies especially to first actions, steps, or stages.

the work started slowly

commence can be more formal or bookish than begin or start.

commence firing
commenced a conversation

initiate implies taking a first step in a process or series that is to continue.

initiated diplomatic contacts

inaugurate suggests a beginning of some formality or notion of significance.

the discovery of penicillin inaugurated a new era in medicine

usher in is somewhat less weighty than inaugurate.

ushered in a period of economic decline

Examples of start in a Sentence

Verb They started clearing land for the new housing development. He started studying music at the age of five. As soon as you're ready to play, we'll start. Let's start with some warm-up exercises. He deleted what he wrote and started fresh. Olympic athletes start young and train hard. I started the quilt last month. Have you started your book report? We started the meeting at 6:30. She started the meeting with a brief review of the previous meeting. Noun knew from the start of the game that he would win easily See More
Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
Everything starts with staff and the tools they are provided with. Sergey Kozhevnikov, Forbes, 28 Nov. 2023 Fanned by a steady stream of content, the song started climbing the charts. Mike Wass, Variety, 28 Nov. 2023 Owen was arrested on a murder charge and has a trial starting this week. CBS News, 28 Nov. 2023 Ramaswamy has held the most events of any candidate in the GOP presidential primary since NBC News started tracking events in May. Mark Murray, NBC News, 28 Nov. 2023 Work from the Front to the Back For a simple cutting technique, Taylor recommends starting with the front pieces of your hair, going curl by curl and only cutting off the dead ends. Akili King, Vogue, 28 Nov. 2023 But, when a few people started leaving comments, Ventura invited some to speak live. Jacob Sweet, The New Yorker, 28 Nov. 2023 The track, released Nov. 17 on Truth or Dare Records, starts at No. 1 on Country Digital Song Sales and No. 9 on the all-genre Digital Song Sales chart with 4,000 sold. Xander Zellner, Billboard, 28 Nov. 2023 Then Siskel started delivering brief movie reviews on a local station. Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 17 Nov. 2023
Noun
Despite what seemed like a promising professional start, Mr. Munger’s personal life was traumatic. Paul Glader, Washington Post, 28 Nov. 2023 So far, the holiday shopping season is off to a positive start. Demetrius Simms, Robb Report, 28 Nov. 2023 From back of the pack to fourth place this year Brown credited his entire management team for quickly responding to their poor start at the beginning of the year when their cars were anything but competitive. Christiaan Hetzner, Fortune, 27 Nov. 2023 Beyoncé handled the production with precision and care, spending a painstaking four years putting together the aural spectacular and battling a knee injury that required surgery in the run-up to the tour’s start. Steven J. Horowitz, Variety, 27 Nov. 2023 Showing few weaknesses and lots of strengths; 3 4. MATER DEI (2-0); Blake Davidson is off to good start; 5 5. CORONA CENTENNIAL (2-2); Close loss to De La Salle; 4 6. Eric Sondheimer, Los Angeles Times, 26 Nov. 2023 Black Friday beauty deals 2023, which offer a dizzying start to the holiday shopping season. Jenny Berg, Vogue, 24 Nov. 2023 In his first career start last season, Brock Purdy led San Francisco to a 35-7 thumping of Tampa Bay. Sam Farmer, Los Angeles Times, 16 Nov. 2023 After refusing to allow fuel into Gaza since the war's start, saying it would be diverted to Hamas, Israeli defense officials early Wednesday let in some 6,340 gallons. Najib Jobain, arkansasonline.com, 16 Nov. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'start.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English sterten; akin to Middle High German sterzen to stand up stiffly, move quickly

First Known Use

Verb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1a

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of start was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near start

Cite this Entry

“Start.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/start. Accessed 2 Dec. 2023.

Kids Definition

start

1 of 2 verb
1
: to move suddenly and sharply : give a sudden twitch or jerk (as in surprise)
2
: to come or bring into being, activity, or operation
who started the rumor
started a camp for youngsters
fire started in the cellar
the game started late
3
: to stick out or seem to stick out : protrude
eyes that started from their sockets
4
: set out sense 2, begin
start to school
5
: to take part or cause to take part in a game or contest
6
: to cause to move, act, or operate
start the motor

start

2 of 2 noun
1
a
: a quick unwilled bodily reaction
b
: a brief and sudden action or movement
2
: a beginning of movement, activity, or development
get an early start
3
: a lead or advantage at the beginning of a race or competition : head start
4
: a place of beginning

More from Merriam-Webster on start

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