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
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in started
to come into existence
the storm began late in the day and lasted all night
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of began
After Iran played to a draw Sunday at SoFi Stadium, its second of the World Cup in as many matches, the team’s coach began his postmatch assessment by backing up six months.
—
Andrew Greif,
NBC news,
22 June 2026
Young also noted that Iran’s Gulf neighbors will invest in pipelines to avoid oil flows through the strait, which allowed for the transit of 20 million barrels a day before the war began.
—
Deva Lee,
CNN Money,
22 June 2026
Getty Images The Philadelphia Phillies have built much of their recent success around a deep and talented starting rotation, so much so that the team was able to confidently move on from a star starter before this season began.
—
Peter Chawaga,
Forbes.com,
22 June 2026
Smoke from a series of wildfires that have burned more than 20,000 acres across South Florida began to ease Sunday, bringing clearer skies to some communities after days of heavy haze and poor air quality.
—
Steve Maugeri,
CBS News,
22 June 2026
As the sun began to lower, the men gathered in a circle, the tempo of their chest-thumping accelerating with the intensity of their chants.
—
Nabih Bulos,
Los Angeles Times,
22 June 2026
Robert Baratheon took the throne during Robert’s Rebellion, and Aerys’ daughter Daenerys (Emilia Clarke) began building up herself and her dragons for a rise to power from afar.
—
Skyler Trepel,
PEOPLE,
22 June 2026
Trump’s birthday began with a new round of Israeli military strikes in Beirut, which the country said was in response to projectiles fired by the militant group Hezbollah at Israel.
—
Zac Anderson,
USA Today,
15 June 2026
Brady began dating supermodel Gisele Bunchen in January 2007.
—
Sarah Sotoodeh,
FOXNews.com,
15 June 2026
Andrew Greif,
NBC news,
22 June 2026
Young also noted that Iran’s Gulf neighbors will invest in pipelines to avoid oil flows through the strait, which allowed for the transit of 20 million barrels a day before the war began.
—
Deva Lee,
CNN Money,
22 June 2026
Getty Images The Philadelphia Phillies have built much of their recent success around a deep and talented starting rotation, so much so that the team was able to confidently move on from a star starter before this season began.
—
Peter Chawaga,
Forbes.com,
22 June 2026
Smoke from a series of wildfires that have burned more than 20,000 acres across South Florida began to ease Sunday, bringing clearer skies to some communities after days of heavy haze and poor air quality.
—
Steve Maugeri,
CBS News,
22 June 2026
As the sun began to lower, the men gathered in a circle, the tempo of their chest-thumping accelerating with the intensity of their chants.
—
Nabih Bulos,
Los Angeles Times,
22 June 2026
Robert Baratheon took the throne during Robert’s Rebellion, and Aerys’ daughter Daenerys (Emilia Clarke) began building up herself and her dragons for a rise to power from afar.
—
Skyler Trepel,
PEOPLE,
22 June 2026
Trump’s birthday began with a new round of Israeli military strikes in Beirut, which the country said was in response to projectiles fired by the militant group Hezbollah at Israel.
—
Zac Anderson,
USA Today,
15 June 2026
Brady began dating supermodel Gisele Bunchen in January 2007.
—
Sarah Sotoodeh,
FOXNews.com,
15 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for began
Verb
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In preparation for the aircraft’s arrival next year, Qantas pilots have commenced training on Australia’s first A350 simulator in Sydney and with British Airways in the UK.
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Years later, on May 24, 2011, Casey's trial commenced in Orlando.
Verb
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Just as nine days of early voting started June 13, Conley became the latest target of attack ads linked to Republicans, who used similar tactics to influence voters in earlier Democratic primaries this year.
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What started as a handful of infested trees in Evergreen, Colorado, has turned into hundreds for landowner Jon Hager.
Verb
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Things to do Menorca’s art scene dates from the 1960s when the Grupo Menorca founded the island’s first contemporary art gallery.
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Clive Davis, the music executive who founded Arista Records and J Records and helped shape the careers of Whitney Houston, Bruce Springsteen, Aretha Franklin, Carlos Santana, Janis Joplin, Alicia Keys, Carrie Underwood and many others, died on Monday at his home in New York City.
Verb
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In his car, Lestat is no longer able to repress his memories after having opened the floodgates.
-
Kyle Stowers opened the scoring with a 426-foot homer in the second, and Otto López drove him in from first with a go-ahead double in the fourth.
Verb
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Wilde’s 2022 psychological thriller, headlined by Florence Pugh and Harry Styles, descended into tabloid chaos amid rampant speculation over an apparent feud between Pugh and Wilde, plus the romance between Wilde and Styles that allegedly originated during production.
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The Scots have also been spotted topping statues of prominent figures with orange traffic cones -- a tradition that, according to BBC, originated in Glasgow in the '80s when a cone was placed atop the head of the Duke of Wellington statue outside the Gallery of Modern Art.
Verb
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What is established is that the celebrated director Lonny Price, who played Neil Kellerman in the movie, is helming this version and Darrell Grand Moultrie, who has a robust background in choreographing both ballet and Beyoncé, is in charge of the dancing.
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Bringing that inside-out understanding of his industry and its history speaks to his strengths as a veteran working actor who has made a habit of dropping into established and popular shows mid-run and shaking things up.
Verb
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Two wars in as many years with Israel — both launched on other’s behalf but with outsized consequences borne here — have resulted in thousands of dead, a million-plus displacement crisis and the leveling and occupation of wide swaths of the country.
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In October 2025 Anthropic launched Claude for Life Sciences, the first time that the company released a product for a specific vertical market.
Verb
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Serious legal questions also arose as to whether ESG violated fiduciary duty laws and if DEI is discriminatory.
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The yoke arose from an inflection point.
Cite this Entry
“Began.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/began. Accessed 26 Jun. 2026.
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