begun

verb

past participle of begin
1
as in commenced
to take the first step in (a process or course of action) she began walking to work for exercise

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2
as in started
to come into existence the storm began late in the day and lasted all night

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in founded
to be responsible for the creation and early operation or use of the religious sect was begun by a small breakaway faction

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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 begun His father, Charles, had expanded the New Jersey real estate development business his grandfather, a Polish Holocaust survivor, had begun after starting out as a construction laborer. — Los Angeles Times, 30 Aug. 2026 The tenants union said North Lawn residents have also begun negotiations with new property owner, Shawn Johnson of Vital20 LLC and Rubicon Realty LLC. — Dylan Lysen, Kansas City Star, 30 Aug. 2026 Authorities in Nepal have begun mass burials of hundreds of unidentified victims whose bodies had started to decompose. — James Powel, USA Today, 30 Aug. 2026 The policy may have begun to impact the economy only in late 2023 or 2024 — years after the inflationary crisis began, and after inflation had already materially declined. — George Calhoun, Fortune, 29 Aug. 2026 NuCube Energy and Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (CNL) have begun a research and development project to validate the heat-pipe technology at the heart of NuCube’s proposed advanced microreactor. — Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 29 Aug. 2026 Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, which patrols PCH in Malibu, has also begun posting photos of the cars the department impounded for excessive speeding. — Kara Finnstrom, CBS News, 28 Aug. 2026 While Pumpkin Spice Season has officially begun at Starbucks and a few other chains, many local shops aren't quite ready to be done with summer specials. — Katie Wiseman, IndyStar, 28 Aug. 2026 The government said Khan’s supporters had begun gathering outside the private hospital in violation of the court order, which required them to stay away from the medical facility to avoid inconveniencing other patients. — ABC News, 24 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for begun
  1. commenced
  2. started
  3. founded
  4. originated
  5. initiated
  6. arisen
  7. constituted
  8. been
Verb
  • The game commenced with four unanswered scores from Jenks and sloppy play from Southlake Carroll that included a handful of early penalties, messy substitutions and a lack of rhythm.
    — Charles Baggarly, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Cloud service agreements totaled $29 billion, with data center leases not commenced of $25 billion, equity investments of $25 billion, and capital expenditures of $8 billion.
    — Zev Fima, CNBC, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of commenced
Verb
  • With incomings, Newcastle’s summer started with a whimper and ended with a bang, a slow-burn of early rejections from high-profile targets which did little to ease a sense of disquiet among supporters.
    — George Caulkin, New York Times, 2 Sep. 2026
  • All four celebs started dipping their toes into fall fashion early this year, reaching for fisherman, funnel-neck, and crewneck sweaters while traveling, sipping coffee, and cooking with Ina Garten.
    — Rachel Trujillo, PEOPLE, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of started
Verb
  • The company was founded in Atlanta by Georgia Tech students, and is still headquartered in the city.
    — Irene Wright, USA Today, 4 Sep. 2026
  • Candle True Stories is part of Candle Media, the media holding company co-founded by former Disney execs Kevin Mayer and Tom Staggs.
    — Todd Spangler, Variety, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of founded
Verb
  • The country's armed forces said that it was targeted by a missile attack that originated from Iranian territory.
    — Lim Hui Jie, CNBC, 2 Sep. 2026
  • More broadly, the open-source movement has made robust design systems available beyond the organizations that originated them.
    — Goran Paun, Forbes.com, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of originated
Verb
  • This is an expansion of a recall initiated in July by Frutas y Hortalizas del Sur for Publix frozen blueberries and mixed berries.
    — Molly Burford, Southern Living, 3 Sep. 2026
  • The recall was initiated after it was discovered by an analyst at TJX (the parent company of the retail stores) that the Chocolatey Eyeballs containing whey (milk) were distributed in packaging that did not reveal the presence of milk.
    — Michele Laufik, Martha Stewart, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of initiated
Verb
  • Michael Seaman decried the piecemeal approach of the project, saying that this was how problems had arisen with Country Club Plaza and Country Club Center.
    — Graham Womack, Sacbee.com, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Another question that has arisen as Walter’s financial troubles have garnered headlines is whether MLB would conduct its own investigation into Dodgers ownership or pressure the billionaire and his partners to sell the team.
    — Steve Henson, Los Angeles Times, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of arisen
Verb
  • Engineers reviewed the process and defined what constituted success, while hardware safeguards such as operating limits, interlocks and emergency stops restricted what the agent could do.
    — Rupendra Brahambhatt, Interesting Engineering, 29 Aug. 2026
  • The court also heard testimony from Christine Reglin, a special agent with the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, who maintained that the agency didn’t think Fatherley’s actions that night constituted a crime.
    — Sofi Zeman August 25, Kansas City Star, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of constituted
Verb
  • Especially at both lines of scrimmage, Nebraska seeks players who’ve been through it.
    — Mitch Sherman, New York Times, 4 Sep. 2026
  • But nowhere have the politics of data centers been more strained than in the Wisconsin governor’s race.
    — Dan Kaufman, New Yorker, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of been

Browse Nearby Words

beguiling
begun
behave
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Cite this Entry

“Begun.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/begun. Accessed 5 Sep. 2026.

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