1
as in began
to take the first step in (a process or course of action)
commence the festivities
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in started
to come into existence
the games commenced early in the morning
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of commenced
In an interview with People magazine published Wednesday, May 13, Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos reflected on authorities' progress in the high-profile search operation, which commenced in early February after Nancy Guthrie was reported missing from her home in Arizona.
—
Edward Segarra, USA Today, 14 May 2026
If dopamine neurons in the basal ganglia degenerate as happens in Parkinson’s disease, movements become harder to initiate and slower once they are commenced.
—Literary Hub, 13 May 2026
Principal photography commenced later that year in Cannes, Nice and the Côte d’Azur, and re-created the festival atmosphere.
—Los Angeles Times, 12 May 2026
Leclerc cuts the chicane, but which point the chasing George Russell fully erases the 14-second gap Leclerc had when the lap commenced.
—Alex Kalinauckas, New York Times, 11 May 2026
At a larger scale, operations have just commenced for heat pumps that route waste heat from Microsoft data centers in Finland to warm approximately 250,000 local residents’ homes.
—Kevin Williams, CNBC, 9 May 2026
The news comes a few weeks after Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) boss Ravi Ahuja commenced a months-long layoffs process that will impact a few hundred of its 12,000 global staff.
—Max Goldbart, Deadline, 8 May 2026
Blue Origin, founded by rival billionaire Jeff Bezos, has commenced commercial launches of its own gargantuan reusable rocket, New Glenn—although not without major problems.
—Ramin Skibba, Scientific American, 4 May 2026
Since the season commenced in Australia in March, the F1 WAGs have made their presence known as they've been seen alongside their partners in the paddock and cheering from the stands during races.
—Skyler Caruso, PEOPLE, 29 Apr. 2026
Edward Segarra, USA Today, 14 May 2026
If dopamine neurons in the basal ganglia degenerate as happens in Parkinson’s disease, movements become harder to initiate and slower once they are commenced.
—Literary Hub, 13 May 2026
Principal photography commenced later that year in Cannes, Nice and the Côte d’Azur, and re-created the festival atmosphere.
—Los Angeles Times, 12 May 2026
Leclerc cuts the chicane, but which point the chasing George Russell fully erases the 14-second gap Leclerc had when the lap commenced.
—Alex Kalinauckas, New York Times, 11 May 2026
At a larger scale, operations have just commenced for heat pumps that route waste heat from Microsoft data centers in Finland to warm approximately 250,000 local residents’ homes.
—Kevin Williams, CNBC, 9 May 2026
The news comes a few weeks after Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) boss Ravi Ahuja commenced a months-long layoffs process that will impact a few hundred of its 12,000 global staff.
—Max Goldbart, Deadline, 8 May 2026
Blue Origin, founded by rival billionaire Jeff Bezos, has commenced commercial launches of its own gargantuan reusable rocket, New Glenn—although not without major problems.
—Ramin Skibba, Scientific American, 4 May 2026
Since the season commenced in Australia in March, the F1 WAGs have made their presence known as they've been seen alongside their partners in the paddock and cheering from the stands during races.
—Skyler Caruso, PEOPLE, 29 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for commenced
Verb
-
In the late 1970s, there began a set of processes which restored the autonomy of financial capital, reset the purpose of politics, and generated a number of formidable new competitors to the nation-state.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
18 May 2026
-
As the play died down, a female fan decked out in White Sox gear reportedly began mercilessly heckling the 24-year-old outfielder.—
Alejandro Avila OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
18 May 2026
Verb
-
That marked the weakest growth since December 2022, according to Wind data, as China started to loosen its Covid curbs.—
Anniek Bao,Evelyn Cheng,
CNBC,
18 May 2026
-
Then, in 2021, I was given the opportunity through a connection at The New York Times to submit an essay about a local organization I’d started six years prior called the Donkey Soccer League.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
18 May 2026
Verb
-
Traditional tendencies were given license to run wild starting in the 1980s, when China’s communist government launched an era of breakneck economic liberalization.—
Chris Lau,
CNN Money,
18 May 2026
-
Two new literary awards, Books of Freedom by Freedom Letters, and Dar, organized by writer Mikhail Shishkin, have been launched explicitly to honor Russian-language books that cannot be published in Russia.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
18 May 2026
Verb
-
Investigators said the deceased originated from Mexico and Honduras.—
Alexandra Koch , Brooke Taylor,
FOXNews.com,
13 May 2026
-
One theory that has popped up is that the virus originated from a bird watching landfill in Ushuaia, located at the southern tip of Argentina, where a couple who were infected with the virus visited, Argentinian officials first hypothesized.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
12 May 2026
Verb
-
In response to the growth of Russia’s dissent émigré community, new Russian language bookstores have opened from Prague to London.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
18 May 2026
-
The latest private-members country club to have opened in Oxfordshire, wrapped in a Jacobethan hall with parkland, is a humdinger with an instant cachet.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
18 May 2026
Verb
-
The sides agreed to the terms of the first three years, but disputes arose over the final year.—
Alexa Herrera,
CBS News,
16 May 2026
-
Hence, enterprise software and, eventually, supply chain software development companies arose.—
Steve Banker,
Forbes.com,
16 May 2026
Verb
-
As boldly charismatic as Caballero appeared on stage, his path to performing in the family circus was hardly clear-cut.—
Andrea Flores,
Los Angeles Times,
19 May 2026
-
Her work has appeared in outlets like Vulture, Food and Wine, Travel + Leisure, SFGATE, Eater, People and CNN Travel.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
19 May 2026
Verb
-
There was an active shooting at the Islamic Center of San Diego.—
Amanda Lee Myers,
USA Today,
19 May 2026
-
In our family, my father was usually the one driving, but there was never any doubt who was really setting our direction.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
19 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Commenced.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/commenced. Accessed 20 May. 2026.
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