as in beginning
the point at which something begins
there was a large turnout at the commencement of the conference, but the numbers dwindled as it progressed
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Recent Examples of commencement
Which means the advice powerful women—from Queen Latifah to Nancy Pelosi—have been giving graduates during commencement speeches this year has looked a little different, too.
—
Sydney Lake, Fortune, 14 May 2026
The country music star and North Carolina native delivered a commencement speech at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
—Edward Segarra, USA Today, 14 May 2026
Stella McCartney will be the Savannah College of Art and Design’s commencement speaker for the SCAD Savannah ceremony on May 29.
—Lisa Lockwood, Footwear News, 14 May 2026
But Haidt—author of the bestselling The Anxious Generation—used the moment less to relitigate culture wars than to deliver what sounded, in many ways, like a commencement speech for an economy of distraction.
—Lisa Chambers, Forbes.com, 14 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for commencement
Sydney Lake, Fortune, 14 May 2026
The country music star and North Carolina native delivered a commencement speech at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
—Edward Segarra, USA Today, 14 May 2026
Stella McCartney will be the Savannah College of Art and Design’s commencement speaker for the SCAD Savannah ceremony on May 29.
—Lisa Lockwood, Footwear News, 14 May 2026
But Haidt—author of the bestselling The Anxious Generation—used the moment less to relitigate culture wars than to deliver what sounded, in many ways, like a commencement speech for an economy of distraction.
—Lisa Chambers, Forbes.com, 14 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for commencement
Recent Examples of Synonyms for commencement
Noun
-
Of course, there is a lot of baseball left to play, and Cole understands the completion of his rehab is merely the beginning of his comeback.—
Gary Phillips,
New York Daily News,
23 May 2026
-
Super exciting one at the beginning, long boring one next, quick changeover after that.—
Seth Abramovitch,
HollywoodReporter,
22 May 2026
Noun
-
Since 2008, starting pitchers have thrown only three pitches of a hundred and three miles per hour or more, including one that Misiorowski threw in his previous start, against the Washington Nationals.—
Louisa Thomas,
New Yorker,
17 May 2026
-
The company makes its products from start to finish.—
Emily M. Olson,
Hartford Courant,
17 May 2026
Noun
-
Characters that remain immensely popular and revered nearly 50 years after their inception.—
Ian Miller OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
20 May 2026
-
The Washington National Opera, at the center since its inception, had already announced plans to leave even before the closure was announced.—
Ted Johnson,
Deadline,
19 May 2026
Noun
-
The onset of hostilities was enough to persuade around a hundred and eighty Democrats to support the measure.—
Jason Zengerle,
New Yorker,
18 May 2026
-
Speculator positions flipped from net short to net long around the onset of the Iran War.—
SJ Guest Editorial,
Footwear News,
18 May 2026
Noun
-
Last-minute pad issues thwarted Thursday evening’s launch attempt.—
Marcia Dunn,
Los Angeles Times,
23 May 2026
-
After the launch, Isaacman hailed the work of SpaceX's Starship team.—
Josh Dinner,
Space.com,
23 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Commencement.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/commencement. Accessed 23 May. 2026.
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