Synonyms of began

began

verb

past tense of begin

1

as in commenced

to take the first step in (a process or course of action)

she began walking to work for exercise

Synonyms & Similar Words

• commenced
• started
• opened
• launched
• created
• fell (to)
• initiated
• set about
• entered (into or upon)
• embarked (on or upon)
• struck (into)
• got to
• got off
• got going
• established
• organized
• led off
• adopted
• originated
• generated
• founded
• invented
• kicked off
• inaugurated
• instituted
• pioneered
• spawned
• innovated
• took up
• took on
• embraced
• fathered
• set up
• got down (to)
• got around (to)
• got round (to)

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• ended
• concluded
• finished
• stopped
• ceased
• terminated
• completed
• halted
• discontinued
• quit
• closed
• laid off
• left
• abandoned
• quitted
• desisted
• destroyed
• abolished
• knocked off
• extinguished
• demolished
• forsook
• exterminated
• phased out

2

as in started

to come into existence

the storm began late in the day and lasted all night

Synonyms & Similar Words

• started
• commenced
• originated
• arose
• appeared
• was
• formed
• emerged
• arrived
• sprang
• dawned
• set in
• sprung
• materialized
• existed
• engendered
• broke
• lived
• continued
• actualized
• lasted
• breathed
• persisted
• came on
• subsisted
• survived
• endured
• coalesced
• shaped (up)
• cohered

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• stopped
• ended
• ceased
• concluded
• finished
• halted
• terminated
• discontinued
• disappeared
• quit
• died
• vanished
• dissolved
• evaporated
• quitted
• desisted
• departed
• expired
• perished
• passed away

3

as in founded

to be responsible for the creation and early operation or use of

the religious sect was begun by a small breakaway faction

Synonyms & Similar Words

• founded
• established
• initiated
• pioneered
• introduced
• launched
• created
• started
• instituted
• inaugurated
• planted
• constituted
• originated
• constructed
• organized
• developed
• innovated
• invented
• set up
• devised
• authored
• produced
• conceived
• manufactured
• thought (up)
• made up
• expanded
• concocted
• funded
• cooked (up)
• contrived
• fathered
• enlarged
• financed
• arranged
• endowed
• fabricated
• subsidized
• reinstituted
• reinitiated
• relaunched
• systematized
• systemized
• refounded
• put up

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• closed (down)
• shut (up)
• ended
• stopped
• finished
• phased out
• abolished
• halted
• nullified
• annulled
• terminated
• annihilated
• rounded (off or out)
• wrapped up
• wound up
• winded up

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of began

Bloom reveals the pair hit it off straight away, and that he was especially charmed by how Barrymore, who began acting at only 11 months old, made an effort to connect with all of the kids on set, too. —EW.com, 28 Jan. 2025

Season 5, episode 11 began with Tommy (Gina Torres) learning that her tumors are growing in size, giving her possibly just days to live. —EW.com, 28 Jan. 2025

Despite being a commoner, Harald broke his father’s rule and began dating Sonja, but Olav ordered Harald to cut off contact with her once he was made aware of their relationship. —Rachel Burchfield, People.com, 28 Jan. 2025

Hilton immediately began giving back to her community and volunteered at the Pasadena Humane Society. —Charna Flam, People.com, 28 Jan. 2025

Carter’s appointment follows a search that began last August. —Ryan MacAsero, The Mercury News, 28 Jan. 2025

The two began dating after filming wrapped and got married in 2022. —EW.com, 28 Jan. 2025

The grave became a place of veneration, then a site of controversy in the early 2000s when Little Round Top’s owner began to shoo away the curious. —Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 28 Jan. 2025

Fighting In Kursk Last summer, Kyiv began a military incursion into the southwestern Russian region, which borders Ukraine's Sumy Oblast. —Barbara A. Perry, Newsweek, 28 Jan. 2025