as in founders
a person who establishes a whole new field of endeavor
as the initiator of printing from movable type, Gutenberg revolutionized people's access to written language
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Recent Examples of initiators
History suggests that wars aimed at reshaping political systems hardly ever unfold as their initiators intend.
—
Thomas Wright, The Atlantic, 6 Mar. 2026
Sochan has experience defending bigger initiators like Cunningham as well as bigger scoring wings and is also a sharp cutter on offense who has a strong sense of how to play off bigs who can pass and space the court.
—Sam Vecenie, New York Times, 13 Jan. 2026
Plenty of brands already offer or are transitioning to TPO-free formulas that contain different photoinitiators (a chemical that makes gel polishes cure under a lamp instead of air-drying like regular polish) such as TPO-L, BAPO, or other resin initiators.
—Hannah Nwoko, Parents, 5 Sep. 2025
Among the customers of our online prenup platform, First, roughly 50% of our prenup initiators are women.
—Libby Leffler, Fortune, 24 Aug. 2025
Recent initiators on high potency Wegovy and Zepbound—who started treatment in 2024—appear to be staying on their medications longer.
—Joshua P. Cohen, Forbes.com, 5 Aug. 2025
Thomas Wright, The Atlantic, 6 Mar. 2026
Sochan has experience defending bigger initiators like Cunningham as well as bigger scoring wings and is also a sharp cutter on offense who has a strong sense of how to play off bigs who can pass and space the court.
—Sam Vecenie, New York Times, 13 Jan. 2026
Plenty of brands already offer or are transitioning to TPO-free formulas that contain different photoinitiators (a chemical that makes gel polishes cure under a lamp instead of air-drying like regular polish) such as TPO-L, BAPO, or other resin initiators.
—Hannah Nwoko, Parents, 5 Sep. 2025
Among the customers of our online prenup platform, First, roughly 50% of our prenup initiators are women.
—Libby Leffler, Fortune, 24 Aug. 2025
Recent initiators on high potency Wegovy and Zepbound—who started treatment in 2024—appear to be staying on their medications longer.
—Joshua P. Cohen, Forbes.com, 5 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for initiators
Noun
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Within days, China’s surprise intervention in the deal quickly shattered that hope, as Beijing stepped up efforts to discourage Chinese AI founders from moving their businesses offshore.—
Dylan Butts,
CNBC,
30 Mar. 2026
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Tony-award-winning actor John Kani said he was stunned when the theatre's founders Barney Simon and Mannie Manim first told him their vision.—
Kate Bartlett,
NPR,
28 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Substack has created its own version of X in a bid to keep users on the platform and introduce Substack journalists and creators to new audiences.—
Max Tani,
semafor.com,
30 Mar. 2026
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The main career opportunities for students graduating from this course are fashion photographers, fashion filmmakers, cinematographers, digital image specialists, video editors, production managers and digital content creators.—
Andrea Onate,
Footwear News,
30 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Following judging, 10 top inventions were selected to advance to the California Invention Convention, where young inventors from across the state will compete on April 26 for top honors and the chance to move onto Nationals this summer.—
News Release,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
29 Mar. 2026
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The process of the invention was longer, and there were a lot of inventors before Lumière.—
Ryan Lattanzio,
IndieWire,
20 Mar. 2026
Noun
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This gap has real consequences, the authors argue.—
Kelly Davis,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
29 Mar. 2026
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Now, agents field interest from sometimes dozens of potential buyers, and authors can pick the deal most appealing to them.—
Leah Asmelash,
CNN Money,
29 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Many of them had a cocky attitude, even after their fathers were killed.—
Marta Balaga,
Variety,
26 Mar. 2026
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Studies show that women’s earnings fall after having children while men see their wages increase after becoming fathers.—
Jacqueline Munis,
Fortune,
26 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Initiators.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/initiators. Accessed 1 Apr. 2026.
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