Synonyms of started

started

verb

past tense of start

1

as in jumped

to move suddenly and sharply (as in surprise)

I started from my chair when I heard the sudden scream

Synonyms & Similar Words

• jumped
• leaped
• cringed
• winced
• startled
• bolted
• flinched
• jerked
• twitched
• reacted
• responded
• sprang
• recoiled
• spooked
• jolted
• shrank
• bounded
• blenched
• quailed
• squinched

2

as in founded

to be responsible for the creation and early operation or use of

started the impressionist movement in art

Synonyms & Similar Words

• founded
• established
• initiated
• pioneered
• introduced
• launched
• began
• created
• instituted
• inaugurated
• planted
• constituted
• originated
• organized
• constructed
• innovated
• developed
• invented
• set up
• devised
• authored
• produced
• conceived
• thought (up)
• manufactured
• expanded
• made up
• funded
• concocted
• cooked (up)
• financed
• enlarged
• fathered
• contrived
• arranged
• fabricated
• endowed
• subsidized
• relaunched
• systematized
• reinitiated
• reinstituted
• put up
• systemized
• refounded

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• closed (down)
• shut (up)
• stopped
• finished
• ended
• abolished
• terminated
• halted
• phased out
• nullified
• annulled
• annihilated
• rounded (off or out)
• wrapped up
• wound up

3

as in triggered

to cause to function

trying to start the car on a frigid morning

Synonyms & Similar Words

• triggered
• activated
• sparked
• drove
• moved
• powered
• generated
• fueled
• ignited
• ran
• set off
• provoked
• pushed
• turned on
• touched off
• actuated
• charged
• launched
• cranked (up)
• fired
• switched
• electrified
• released
• stimulated
• energized
• turned over
• excited
• reactivated
• discharged
• accelerated
• tripped
• instigated
• aroused
• kick-started
• kicked over
• incited
• recharged
• jump-started
• stirred up
• catalyzed
• quickened
• stepped up
• sped (up)
• vitalized

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• killed
• cut
• stopped
• shut off
• cut out
• turned off
• checked
• stuck
• arrested
• halted
• stalled
• cut off
• jammed
• drew up
• deactivated
• slowed
• suppressed
• stunted
• braked
• repressed
• decelerated

4

as in began

to come into existence

the fight started when one child tripped the other

Synonyms & Similar Words

• began
• commenced
• originated
• arose
• appeared
• was
• formed
• emerged
• arrived
• sprang
• dawned
• set in
• materialized
• engendered
• existed
• broke
• lived
• actualized
• continued
• lasted
• breathed
• persisted
• came on
• survived
• subsisted
• endured
• shaped (up)
• coalesced
• cohered

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• stopped
• ended
• ceased
• finished
• concluded
• terminated
• halted
• discontinued
• quit
• disappeared
• died
• dissolved
• vanished
• evaporated
• desisted
• departed
• expired
• passed away
• perished

5

as in protruded

to extend outward beyond a usual point

frightened horses with starting eyes

Synonyms & Similar Words

• protruded
• poked
• bulged
• swelled
• projected
• stood out
• ballooned
• stuck out
• jutted
• bunched
• billowed
• pouted
• pouched
• pooched
• extended
• bellied
• overhung
• beetled
• bagged
• stretched
• lengthened
• snowballed
• expanded
• mushroomed
• inflated
• dilated
• distended
• elongated
• blew up
• domed

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• contracted
• compressed
• condensed
• shrank
• constricted

6

as in commenced

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

we'll be ready to start the concert in a moment

Synonyms & Similar Words

• began
• commenced
• opened
• launched
• created
• fell (to)
• initiated
• entered (into or upon)
• set about
• embarked (on or upon)
• struck (into)
• got to
• got off
• organized
• got going
• established
• adopted
• led off
• generated
• originated
• founded
• kicked off
• invented
• inaugurated
• instituted
• pioneered
• spawned
• innovated
• embraced
• took up
• took on
• set up
• fathered
• got down (to)
• got around (to)
• got round (to)

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• ended
• finished
• concluded
• stopped
• terminated
• ceased
• completed
• halted
• discontinued
• quit
• laid off
• closed
• left
• abandoned
• desisted
• destroyed
• knocked off
• abolished
• extinguished
• demolished
• forsook
• phased out
• exterminated

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of started

The duration of Kyrgios’ ban will depend in part on whether he is found to have deliberately taken the drug, and in part on whether the incident happened before the tournament started. — James Hansen, New York Times, 19 Aug. 2026

Perez says Atlantic City was becoming a popular summer resort, and the idea for the first wooden walkway all started with keeping sand out of railroad cars and hotels. — Ryan Hughes, CBS News, 19 Aug. 2026

Wang famously started Unitree in 2016 after a two-month stint at DJI and built his first bipedal robot as an undergraduate with 200 yuan in parts. — John Koetsier, Forbes.com, 19 Aug. 2026

By all accounts, Hayden Panettiere’s new life was just getting started. — Holly Yan, CNN Money, 19 Aug. 2026

The move reflects a broader strategy by Chinese automakers to manufacture closer to African consumers rather than rely solely on imports, though the trend is just getting started. — ABC News, 12 Aug. 2026

The City of Atlanta and Fulton County’s Board of Commissioners have been trading negotiations over the sale of the Atlanta City Detention Center, and things have started to get ugly. — Aj Willingham, AJC.com, 12 Aug. 2026