1
as in began
to take the first step in (a process or course of action)
I'll kick off the discussion on ethics with this question
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in died
slang
to stop living
surprisingly, the recluse was worth a cool million when he kicked off
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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Recent Examples of kicked off
And then the match kicked off, Newcastle were passive and on the back foot, and the idea of football as an academic exercise was obliterated.
—
George Caulkin, New York Times, 20 Mar. 2026
That led Traynham to the North Carolina Troopers’ Association, where a successful interview kicked off two years of training in human remains detection.
—Liz Teitz, San Antonio Express-News, 19 Mar. 2026
The high pressure system kicked off Thursday, setting daily temperature records in Ventura County and tying a daily heat record of 92 degrees in Long Beach.
—Clara Harter, Los Angeles Times, 13 Mar. 2026
Clairo kicked off the week with an Instagram photo dump that featured pictures from what looks to be like studio sessions, indicating that the singer may be getting ready to drop her fourth album.
—Maya Georgi, Rolling Stone, 12 Mar. 2026
Opening Day for Ramona Pony Baseball’s 47th year kicked off one of the league’s biggest seasons on Saturday with 462 players ready to take the diamond.
—Stephanie Ogilvie, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Mar. 2026
Spelling had already reached the full height of her small-screen fame playing Donna Martin on Beverly Hills, 90210, which kicked off in 1990.
—Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 5 Mar. 2026
The discoveries kicked off an investigation that eventually led to a cross-state manhunt.
—Frederick Dreier, Outside, 5 Mar. 2026
High Potential, created by Drew Goddard based on the French series HPI, kicked off 2026 in a new timeslot, airing an hour earlier at 9pm.
—Peter White, Deadline, 5 Mar. 2026
George Caulkin, New York Times, 20 Mar. 2026
That led Traynham to the North Carolina Troopers’ Association, where a successful interview kicked off two years of training in human remains detection.
—Liz Teitz, San Antonio Express-News, 19 Mar. 2026
The high pressure system kicked off Thursday, setting daily temperature records in Ventura County and tying a daily heat record of 92 degrees in Long Beach.
—Clara Harter, Los Angeles Times, 13 Mar. 2026
Clairo kicked off the week with an Instagram photo dump that featured pictures from what looks to be like studio sessions, indicating that the singer may be getting ready to drop her fourth album.
—Maya Georgi, Rolling Stone, 12 Mar. 2026
Opening Day for Ramona Pony Baseball’s 47th year kicked off one of the league’s biggest seasons on Saturday with 462 players ready to take the diamond.
—Stephanie Ogilvie, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Mar. 2026
Spelling had already reached the full height of her small-screen fame playing Donna Martin on Beverly Hills, 90210, which kicked off in 1990.
—Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 5 Mar. 2026
The discoveries kicked off an investigation that eventually led to a cross-state manhunt.
—Frederick Dreier, Outside, 5 Mar. 2026
High Potential, created by Drew Goddard based on the French series HPI, kicked off 2026 in a new timeslot, airing an hour earlier at 9pm.
—Peter White, Deadline, 5 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for kicked off
Verb
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After the war began in 2023, Ach founded a group called The Israeli Reservists Generation of Victory.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
16 Mar. 2026
-
The Knicks began to assert themselves in the second half, with Karl-Anthony Towns playing more in the post.—
Joseph Dycus,
Mercury News,
16 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Val Kilmer, who died in 2025 at age 65, will appear in the upcoming drama As Deep As the Grave.—
Aamir Khollam,
Interesting Engineering,
19 Mar. 2026
-
The funeral prayer for the 41-year-old Afghan father of six who died Saturday in ICE custody was held Tuesday while more questions arise about why he was picked up and what caused his death less than a day later.—
Fousia Abdullahi,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
18 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Spring football has commenced and reporters got a 35-minute window to watch Coleman and a host of new Longhorns who are out to make sure last season’s omission from the College Football Playoff was a one-off and not the start of a bad-for-business trend on the Forty.—
Cedric Golden,
Austin American Statesman,
11 Mar. 2026
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Lake Zurich Mayor Tom Poynton was part of the annual purple ribbon cutting on the beach before plunging commenced.—
Karie Angell Luc,
Chicago Tribune,
9 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
In Greek tragedies, the hero is felled by a fatal flaw.—
Maer Roshan,
HollywoodReporter,
10 Mar. 2026
-
Apartment buildings were felled by air strikes, and smoke billowed from the blasts; the buzz of Israeli drones filled the air.—
Rania Abouzeid,
New Yorker,
5 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
After a fruitless Minnesota power play, emotions started to boil over, as a tie-up along the boards in the Toronto end of the ice devolved into a full-on scrum, with players from both teams ending up in the penalty box.—
Jess Myers,
Twin Cities,
16 Mar. 2026
-
What started as an academic experiment eventually developed into an advanced robotic system capable of achieving a world record.—
Prabhat Ranjan Mishra,
Interesting Engineering,
16 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The challenge was created by the Taylor family, in honor of Hannah Taylor, a diehard UConn basketball fan who passed away in 2012 at age 32 following a battle with brain cancer.—
Kels Dayton,
Hartford Courant,
18 Mar. 2026
-
Some of the names of past crawler support personnel who have passed away are enshrined on the side of the crawler as a memorial.—
Richard Tribou,
The Orlando Sentinel,
18 Mar. 2026
Verb
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In February of last year, Martinez proudly opened eight brand-new pickleball courts to the public.—
John Ramos,
CBS News,
16 Mar. 2026
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Cuba's President Miguel Díaz-Canel said on Friday, March 13, that the country opened talks with the United States as the island faces one of its most severe economic crises in decades.—
Jarrett Renshaw,
USA Today,
16 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Lamar Odom has reportedly checked out of rehab after completing a 30-day program following his DUI arrest earlier this year.—
Joseph Wilkinson,
New York Daily News,
26 Feb. 2026
-
Paramedics checked out three people, but none went to the hospital.—
Adam Harrington,
CBS News,
22 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Kicked off.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/kicked%20off. Accessed 20 Mar. 2026.
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