Synonyms of start

start 1 of 4

verb (1)

ˈstärt 

1

as in to begin

to come into existence

the fight started when one child tripped the other

Synonyms & Similar Words

• begin
• commence
• originate
• appear
• arise
• be
• emerge
• form
• arrive
• set in
• spring
• materialize
• break
• exist
• live
• last
• dawn
• continue
• actualize
• engender
• breathe
• survive
• come on
• persist
• subsist
• endure
• shape (up)
• coalesce
• cohere

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• stop
• end
• cease
• finish
• conclude
• quit
• terminate
• discontinue
• halt
• disappear
• die
• dissolve
• vanish
• depart
• desist
• expire
• evaporate
• perish
• pass away

2

as in to commence

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

• begin
• commence
• open
• launch
• found
• fall (to)
• set about
• create
• get going
• enter (into or upon)
• embark (on or upon)
• strike (into)
• get off
• initiate
• get to
• lead off
• organize
• generate
• establish
• kick off
• originate
• adopt
• invent
• inaugurate
• pioneer
• institute
• innovate
• take up
• take on
• embrace
• spawn
• get down (to)
• get around (to)
• set up
• father
• get round (to)

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• end
• finish
• stop
• conclude
• terminate
• cease
• quit
• discontinue
• complete
• halt
• close
• leave
• abandon
• lay off
• desist
• destroy
• abolish
• knock off
• extinguish
• forsake
• phase out
• exterminate
• demolish

3

as in to establish

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

started the impressionist movement in art

Synonyms & Similar Words

• establish
• initiate
• found
• pioneer
• launch
• begin
• introduce
• create
• institute
• inaugurate
• plant
• constitute
• construct
• organize
• originate
• innovate
• set up
• develop
• invent
• author
• produce
• devise
• manufacture
• think (up)
• conceive
• expand
• fund
• make up
• cook (up)
• finance
• contrive
• concoct
• enlarge
• father
• arrange
• subsidize
• endow
• fabricate
• systematize
• reinitiate
• put up
• relaunch
• reinstitute
• systemize
• refound

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• close (down)
• shut (up)
• stop
• end
• finish
• abolish
• nullify
• terminate
• phase out
• annul
• halt
• annihilate
• wind up
• round (off or out)
• wrap up

4

as in to activate

to cause to function

trying to start the car on a frigid morning

Synonyms & Similar Words

• activate
• trigger
• spark
• drive
• move
• power
• generate
• set off
• run
• fuel
• ignite
• provoke
• turn on
• actuate
• push
• charge
• touch off
• launch
• crank (up)
• fire
• stimulate
• switch
• energize
• electrify
• release
• trip
• turn over
• accelerate
• reactivate
• kick over
• discharge
• kick-start
• instigate
• jump-start
• recharge
• quicken
• incite
• stir up
• excite
• arouse
• catalyze
• step up
• vitalize
• speed (up)

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• cut
• kill
• stop
• shut off
• cut out
• check
• turn off
• stick
• cut off
• halt
• brake
• arrest
• draw up
• deactivate
• slow
• suppress
• stall
• jam
• repress
• decelerate
• stunt

5

as in to jump

to move suddenly and sharply (as in surprise)

I started from my chair when I heard the sudden scream

Synonyms & Similar Words

• jump
• leap
• cringe
• wince
• flinch
• startle
• bolt
• twitch
• jerk
• react
• bound
• respond
• spring
• shrink
• recoil
• spook
• jolt
• quail
• blench
• squinch

6

as in to protrude

to extend outward beyond a usual point

frightened horses with starting eyes

Synonyms & Similar Words

• protrude
• poke
• stand out
• project
• jut
• bulge
• swell
• stick out
• bunch
• extend
• pout
• overhang
• balloon
• pouch
• billow
• lengthen
• pooch
• belly
• stretch
• dome
• expand
• beetle
• bag
• inflate
• dilate
• snowball
• distend
• elongate
• blow up
• mushroom

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• shrink
• contract
• compress
• condense
• constrict

start

2 of 4

noun (1)

as in beginning

the point at which something begins

knew from the start of the game that he would win easily

Synonyms & Similar Words

• beginning
• commencement
• inception
• onset
• launch
• alpha
• outset
• dawn
• genesis
• baseline
• morning
• threshold
• birth
• kickoff
• infancy
• day one
• initiation
• get-go
• inauguration
• founding
• origination
• incipiency
• origin
• incipience
• nascence
• nascency
• spring
• first base
• opening
• arrival
• drawing board
• creation
• debut
• emergence
• well
• source
• ground zero
• institution
• germ
• cradle
• fountain
• dawning
• advent
• square one
• childhood
• root
• appearance
• seedbed
• youth
• fountainhead
• wellspring

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• end
• close
• conclusion
• ending
• period
• stop
• finish
• completion
• closing
• termination
• closure
• cessation
• omega
• finale
• windup

starts

3 of 4

verb (2)

present tense third-person singular of start

1

as in jumps

to move suddenly and sharply (as in surprise)

I started from my chair when I heard the sudden scream

Synonyms & Similar Words

• jumps
• winces
• leaps
• cringes
• startles
• flinches
• reacts
• bolts
• twitches
• jerks
• responds
• recoils
• shrinks
• springs
• jolts
• spooks
• bounds
• blenches
• quails
• squinches

2

as in founds

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

started the impressionist movement in art

Synonyms & Similar Words

• founds
• establishes
• initiates
• begins
• launches
• introduces
• creates
• institutes
• pioneers
• inaugurates
• plants
• constitutes
• originates
• innovates
• organizes
• constructs
• develops
• invents
• sets up
• authors
• produces
• fathers
• manufactures
• conceives
• devises
• concocts
• expands
• thinks (up)
• cooks (up)
• contrives
• enlarges
• makes up
• subsidizes
• endows
• arranges
• finances
• fabricates
• funds
• systematizes
• reinitiates
• relaunches
• systemizes
• reinstitutes
• refounds
• puts up

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• closes (down)
• ends
• shuts (up)
• stops
• finishes
• abolishes
• terminates
• annihilates
• nullifies
• halts
• annuls
• phases out
• rounds (off or out)
• winds up
• wraps up

3

as in activates

to cause to function

trying to start the car on a frigid morning

Synonyms & Similar Words

• activates
• triggers
• sparks
• drives
• moves
• generates
• powers
• fuels
• runs
• ignites
• sets off
• provokes
• actuates
• turns on
• pushes
• launches
• touches off
• cranks (up)
• fires
• charges
• stimulates
• energizes
• electrifies
• switches
• accelerates
• turns over
• releases
• trips
• reactivates
• excites
• arouses
• kick-starts
• incites
• kicks over
• instigates
• quickens
• recharges
• discharges
• jump-starts
• catalyzes
• speeds (up)
• stirs up
• steps up
• vitalizes

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• kills
• stops
• cuts
• turns off
• shuts off
• brakes
• arrests
• cuts out
• halts
• checks
• sticks
• stalls
• jams
• slows
• deactivates
• cuts off
• suppresses
• draws up
• represses
• decelerates
• stunts

4

as in begins

to come into existence

the fight started when one child tripped the other

Synonyms & Similar Words

• begins
• commences
• originates
• arises
• appears
• is
• emerges
• arrives
• forms
• springs
• engenders
• exists
• breaks
• dawns
• lasts
• materializes
• sets in
• lives
• actualizes
• continues
• breathes
• persists
• survives
• comes on
• subsists
• endures
• shapes (up)
• coalesces
• coheres

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• ends
• stops
• ceases
• concludes
• finishes
• terminates
• disappears
• halts
• quits
• vanishes
• dissolves
• dies
• evaporates
• departs
• expires
• discontinues
• desists
• perishes
• passes away

5

as in protrudes

to extend outward beyond a usual point

frightened horses with starting eyes

Synonyms & Similar Words

• protrudes
• pokes
• juts
• bulges
• stands out
• swells
• sticks out
• projects
• pouts
• extends
• billows
• overhangs
• bunches
• beetles
• pouches
• lengthens
• bellies
• balloons
• bags
• stretches
• inflates
• expands
• dilates
• pooches
• distends
• elongates
• domes
• mushrooms
• snowballs
• blows up

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• shrinks
• contracts
• condenses
• compresses
• constricts

6

as in commences

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

• begins
• commences
• opens
• launches
• falls (to)
• creates
• enters (into or upon)
• strikes (into)
• initiates
• gets going
• embarks (on or upon)
• gets off
• generates
• gets to
• leads off
• sets about
• originates
• organizes
• establishes
• kicks off
• adopts
• invents
• inaugurates
• founds
• institutes
• spawns
• innovates
• fathers
• embraces
• takes on
• takes up
• gets down (to)
• gets around (to)
• sets up
• pioneers
• gets round (to)

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• ends
• concludes
• finishes
• stops
• terminates
• ceases
• closes
• halts
• completes
• quits
• discontinues
• leaves
• abandons
• desists
• destroys
• lays off
• forsakes
• knocks off
• abolishes
• extinguishes
• demolishes
• exterminates
• phases out

starts

4 of 4

noun (2)

plural of start

as in beginnings

the point at which something begins

knew from the start of the game that he would win easily

Synonyms & Similar Words

• beginnings
• launches
• inceptions
• onsets
• commencements
• alphas
• dawns
• thresholds
• geneses
• outsets
• day ones
• baselines
• mornings
• kickoffs
• incipiencies
• incipiences
• births
• nascencies
• infancies
• originations
• nascences
• get-goes
• initiations
• origins
• first bases
• inaugurations
• drawing boards
• ground zeros
• debuts
• square ones
• springs
• cradles
• arrivals
• emergences
• institutions
• openings
• fountains
• germs
• sources
• creations
• wells
• appearances
• roots
• fountainheads
• advents
• wellsprings
• childhoods
• youths
• seedbeds

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• ends
• closes
• conclusions
• endings
• stops
• finishes
• periods
• closures
• completions
• terminations
• closings
• omegas
• cessations
• finales
• windups

Synonym Chooser

How is the word start different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of start are begin, commence, inaugurate, initiate, and usher in. While all these words mean "to take the first step in a course, process, or operation," start, opposed to stop, applies especially to first actions, steps, or stages.

the work started slowly

How is begin related to other words for start?

Begin, start, and commence are often interchangeable, with begin, opposed to end, being the most general.

begin a trip

began dancing

How does the word commence relate to other synonyms for start?

Commence can be more formal or bookish than begin or start.

commence firing

commenced a conversation

When could inaugurate be used to replace start?

The meanings of inaugurate and start largely overlap; however, inaugurate suggests a beginning of some formality or notion of significance.

the discovery of penicillin inaugurated a new era in medicine

In what contexts can initiate take the place of start?

Although the words initiate and start have much in common, initiate implies taking a first step in a process or series that is to continue.

initiated diplomatic contacts

How are the words usher in and inaugurate related as synonyms of start?

Usher in is somewhat less weighty than inaugurate.

ushered in a period of economic decline

How is the word start different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of start are begin, commence, inaugurate, initiate, and usher in. While all these words mean "to take the first step in a course, process, or operation," start, opposed to stop, applies especially to first actions, steps, or stages.

the work started slowly

How is begin related to other words for start?

Begin, start, and commence are often interchangeable, with begin, opposed to end, being the most general.

begin a trip

began dancing

How does the word commence relate to other synonyms for start?

Commence can be more formal or bookish than begin or start.

commence firing

commenced a conversation

When could inaugurate be used to replace start?

The meanings of inaugurate and start largely overlap; however, inaugurate suggests a beginning of some formality or notion of significance.

the discovery of penicillin inaugurated a new era in medicine

In what contexts can initiate take the place of start?

Although the words initiate and start have much in common, initiate implies taking a first step in a process or series that is to continue.

initiated diplomatic contacts

How are the words usher in and inaugurate related as synonyms of start?

Usher in is somewhat less weighty than inaugurate.

ushered in a period of economic decline

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of start

Verb

While my mom stayed in the car to nurse the baby, my father and I went inside, and a nice elderly couple started talking to me in line, just making conversation. —Zayd Ayers Dohrn, New Yorker, 28 Mar. 2026

After taking time to get that work started, results began to show. —Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 28 Mar. 2026

Noun

Last year Duran stole 16 bases in the first half (95 starts) and eight in the second (57). —Gabrielle Starr, Boston Herald, 28 Mar. 2026

And 2026 is already off to a bright start, with a buzzy debut novel from Jennette McCurdy, plenty of celebrity memoirs and sci-fi spectaculars. —Clare Mulroy, USA Today, 28 Mar. 2026

Verb

That is how small, unplanned spending starts to add up. —Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 31 Mar. 2026

The 2026 Atlas starts at $39,310, excluding destination charge. —Mark Phelan, Freep.com, 31 Mar. 2026

Noun

Production on part two starts later this year. —Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 30 Mar. 2026

Freddy Fermin is 1-for-6 with a walk and two strikeouts in his two starts at catcher. —Jeff Sanders, San Diego Union-Tribune, 30 Mar. 2026

Phrases Containing start

• to start with