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
• closed
• quit
• laid off
• left
• abandoned
• 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
• materialized
• existed
• engendered
• lived
• broke
• 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
• 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
• abolished
• terminated
• halted
• phased out
• annulled
• nullified
• annihilated
• rounded (off or out)
• wrapped up
• wound up

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of began

Austin Duffield was asleep on his couch in the apartment below Cincotti's when the fire began. —Garrett Behanna, CBS News, 30 Mar. 2026

Potter, who began his career playing for the Heat’s Summer League team as an undrafted player out of Wisconsin in 2021, scored 19 in the first half (on 5 for 6 three-point shooting) and 21 for the game. —Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 30 Mar. 2026

That operation began on October 29, 1956, when Israel invaded the Sinai Peninsula and rapidly overwhelmed Egyptian forces. —Ishaan Tharoor, New Yorker, 30 Mar. 2026

Tehran praised its attack as a show of strength, even as Israel's military asserts that Iranian missile launches have decreased since the war began. —Arkansas Online, 23 Mar. 2026

However, in the days leading up to her flight, a cascade of headlines – from geopolitical tensions to airport disruptions – began to chip away at her confidence in traveling at all. —Nathan Diller, USA Today, 23 Mar. 2026

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

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

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