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commence

verb

Synonyms and Antonyms of commence

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

  • commence the festivities
Synonyms of commence

begin, embark (on or upon), enter (into or upon), fall (to), get off, kick off, launch, lead off, open, start, strike (into)
Words Related to commence

create, generate, inaugurate, initiate, innovate, invent, originate

adopt, embrace, take on, take up

establish, father, found, institute, organize, pioneer, set up, spawn

get around (to), get down (to), get round (to)
Phrases Synonymous with commence

get going, get to, set about
Near Antonyms of commence

cease, desist, discontinue, halt, knock off, lay off, quit, stop

close, complete

abandon, forsake, leave

abolish, demolish, destroy, exterminate, extinguish, phase out
Antonyms of commence

conclude, end, finish, terminate

2 to come into existence

  • the games commenced early in the morning
Synonyms of commence

actualize, appear, arise, begin, break, dawn, engender, form, materialize, originate, set in, spring, start
Words Related to commence

be, breathe, exist, live, subsist

arrive, come on, emerge

coalesce, cohere, shape (up)

continue, endure, last, persist, survive
Near Antonyms of commence

conclude, desist, discontinue, finish, halt, quit, terminate

disappear, dissolve, evaporate, vanish

depart, die, expire, pass away, perish
Antonyms of commence

cease, end, stop

Synonym Discussion of commence

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

Learn More about commence

  1. See words that rhyme with commence Dictionary: Definition of commence Spanish Central: Translation of commence Nglish: Translation of commence for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of commence for Arabic speakers

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