ONSETS Synonyms: 125 Similar and Opposite Words

onsets

noun

plural of onset

as in attacks

the act or action of setting upon with force or violence the walls withstood the onset of the first battalion

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in beginnings

the point at which something begins the claim that if you take enough vitamin C at the onset of a cold, you'll often recover faster

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of onsets Experts said the second earthquake began before the first had even ended, with the two onsets separated by just 39 seconds. — Elizabeth Robinson, NBC news, 26 June 2026 Anxiety disorders can persist into adulthood, particularly those disorders with early onsets and those that are left untreated. — Elana Bernstein, The Conversation, 13 May 2022

Recent Examples of Synonyms for onsets

Noun

Asif said the Houthis had intensified missile and drone attacks on Saudi Arabia and expanded their control along Yemen's Red Sea coast.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 30 Sep. 2026
In the case of the Ratepayer Protection Act, Republicans were searching for an answer to Democratic attacks on data centers and the higher energy prices consumers fear will come from their construction.

— David Sivak, The Washington Examiner, 30 Sep. 2026

Definition of attacks

Noun

Despite their rural beginnings, spending time in downtown Atlanta was a big part of Shyretha and Mike’s adulthood.

— Olivia Wakim, AJC.com, 24 Sep. 2026
The unraveling of a previous romantic relationship and the beginnings of her current love story with boyfriend and fellow country music artist Morgan Evans, inform her latest album.

— Jessica Nicholson, Billboard, 23 Sep. 2026

Definition of beginnings

Noun

Another suspect in the 2023 attacks, Italian anti-fascist activist Ilaria Salis, was jailed in Hungary for over a year following the assaults, resulting in a diplomatic dispute between Rome and Budapest over her treatment in detention.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 1 Oct. 2026
Prosecutors used the Idaho assaults to prove a pattern of abuse, and put a life sentence on the table.

— Olivia Young, CBS News, 28 Sep. 2026

Definition of assaults

Noun

The operations have led to the displacement of tens of thousands of Palestinians across the territory and military raids into Palestinian villages.

— Oren Liebermann, CNN Money, 23 Sep. 2026
Government troops also conducted raids in various areas Thursday and killed 10 militants believed to be members of the Pakistani Taliban, the military and police said.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 19 Sep. 2026

Definition of raids

Noun

In fact, reported evidence suggests this software commitment (from a company making its revenue from hardware) has been crucial to Nvidia’s success in fending off onslaughts from other hardware vendors such as Intel.

— Nisha Talagala, Forbes.com, 28 Aug. 2026
Ukraine has been largely helpless in similar Russian onslaughts in recent weeks.

— Tom Bowman, NPR, 4 Aug. 2026

Definition of onslaughts

Browse Nearby Words

onset

onsets

onslaught

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Onsets.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/onsets. Accessed 1 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of onsets

noun

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

slew

Popular in Grammar & Usage

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Popular in Wordplay

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Words of the Week - Oct. 2

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

Popular

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List

Games & Quizzes