to begin or set out, as on a journey or activity.
to appear or come suddenly into action, life, view, etc.; rise or issue suddenly forth.
to spring, move, or dart suddenly from a position or place.
The rabbit started from the bush.
to be among the entrants in a race or the initial participants in a game or contest.
to give a sudden, involuntary jerk, jump, or twitch, as from a shock of surprise, alarm, or pain.
The sudden clap of thunder caused everyone to start.
to protrude.
eyes seeming to start from their sockets.
to spring, slip, or work loose from place or fastenings, as timbers or other structural parts.
to set moving, going, or acting; to set in operation.
to start an automobile; to start a fire.
to establish or found.
to start a new business.
to begin work on.
to start a book.
to enable or help (someone) set out on a journey, a career, or the like.
The record started the young singer on the road to stardom.
to cause or choose to be an entrant in a game or contest.
He started his ace pitcher in the crucial game.
to cause (an object) to work loose from place or fastenings.
to rouse (game) from its lair or covert; flush.
to draw or discharge (liquid or other contents) from a vessel or container; empty (a container).
Archaic. to cause to twitch, jump, or flinch involuntarily; startle.
a beginning of an action, journey, etc.
a signal to move, proceed, or begin, as on a course or in a race.
a place or time from which something begins.
the first part or beginning segment of anything.
The start of the book was good but the last half was dull.
an instance of being a participant in a race or an initial participant in a game or contest.
The horse won his first two starts.
a sudden, springing movement from a position.
a sudden, involuntary jerking movement of the body.
to awake with a start.
a lead or advance of specified amount, as over competitors or pursuers.
the position or advantage of one who starts first.
The youngest child should have the start over the rest.
a chance, opportunity, aid, or encouragement given to one starting on a course or career.
The bride's parents gave the couple a start by buying them a house.
a spurt of activity.
a starting of parts from their place or fastenings in a structure.
the resulting break or opening.
an outburst or sally, as of emotion, wit, or fancy.
to begin or cause to begin (something or to do something); come or cause to come into being, operation, etc
he started a quarrel
they started to work
to make or cause to make a beginning of (a process, series of actions, etc)
they started on the project
(sometimes foll by up) to set or be set in motion
he started up the machine
(intr) to make a sudden involuntary movement of one's body, from or as if from fright; jump
(intr; sometimes foll by up, away, etc) to spring or jump suddenly from a position or place
to establish or be established; set up
to start a business
(tr) to support (someone) in the first part of a venture, career, etc
to work or cause to work loose
to enter or be entered in a race
(intr) to flow violently from a source
wine started from a hole in the cask
(tr) to rouse (game) from a hiding place, lair, etc
(intr) (esp of eyes) to bulge; pop
an archaic word for startle
informal (intr) to commence quarrelling or causing a disturbance
in the first place
the first or first part of a series of actions or operations, a journey, etc
the place or time of starting, as of a race or performance
a signal to proceed, as in a race
a lead or advantage, either in time or distance and usually of specified extent, in a competitive activity
he had an hour's start on me
a slight involuntary movement of the body, as through fright, surprise, etc
she gave a start as I entered
an opportunity to enter a career, undertake a project, etc
informal a surprising incident
a part that has come loose or been disengaged
spasmodically; without concerted effort
in the first place
See begin.
First recorded before 1150; Middle English verb sterte(n), stirte(n), “to rush out, leap” (cognate with Middle High German sterzen ); replacing Old English styrtan (attested once), cognate with German stürzen; noun derivative of the verb
The beginning of something is the start. The start of the movie may have been a little slow, but by the end you were on the edge of your seat. As a verb, start means to begin an activity or event. Some people turn to the last page of a book before they even start it, so they'll be prepared for the ending. Start can also mean to move suddenly in surprise or alarm, or to startle. This is actually the original meaning of the word start, which comes from the Old English word styrtan, meaning to caper or to leap up.
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
At the start, Infantino said "we have had discussions about expanding to 64 teams" for 2030.
From Barron's ● Jul. 28, 2026
At the start of his fifth season, Riley is convinced the Trojans are right on schedule.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026
"We have to go step by step again, but we can't wait until we're physically top to start getting results," the Belgian said.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
The debilitating onset of psychosis was “no longer the start of an inner journey. . . . It was a brain disease.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
With the support of his new grandparents, he allowed himself to finally start saying goodbye to Grandma, the first of many steps in a world, in a life, without her physical presence.
From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith
But New START, which expired on February 5, restricted the United States and Russia to 1,550 deployed nuclear warheads each -- a number Washington says China is fast approaching.
From Barron's ● Feb. 23, 2026
“We understand that this process can take time. Past agreements, including New START, took years to negotiate and were built upon decades of precedent,” he wrote.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 6, 2026
The Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, known as "New START" and signed in 2010 was one of a handful of agreements designed to help prevent a catastrophic nuclear war.
From BBC ● Feb. 4, 2026
Allowing inspections of weapons sites and providing information on the placement of intercontinental and submarine-based ballistic missiles and their test launches are critical components of New START, which U.S.
From Washington Times ● Jun. 12, 2023
He told us he had then on these mountains 15,000 head of dear, and thought we might like to see a START, as it is called.
From Letters from England by Bancroft, Elizabeth Davis
The checkout button may also matter less if AI starts to do the shopping. Amazon.com has tools that track a price and buy when it drops.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
Let’s say the 2027 baseball season starts late.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026
Scientists know the European eel starts its life in the Sargasso Sea, off the east coast of the United States, but they have never witnessed its breeding behaviour in the wild.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
But one question I’ve started getting from reporters is what happens if AI gets so good that everyone starts using it.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 27, 2026
At every checkpoint, these staggered starts were used.
From "Black Star, Bright Dawn" by Scott O'Dell
The active fires near Madrid started last week as three separate fires, spread uncontrolled and eventually merged into a single megafire.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
"I think the army has proved its success because people have started to return and they are comfortable with its presence in the village," Sbeih, 62, said as he waited at a bakery there.
From Barron's ● Jul. 28, 2026
Awuche had not always been unusually tall - it was at the age of 22 that he started to grow quicker than his peers.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
When the semis trade started to wobble late last month, many analysts on Wall Street initially hoped the pain would be short-lived.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 28, 2026
The bus lurched dreadfully as it started up but we were standing too close together to fall.
From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom
Investors may also adopt wait-and-see stance ahead of the BOJ’s two-day meeting starting Thursday.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
And in Tuesday night's second leg, eight starting players remained from last season.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
Many years later, activist Angela Davis credited Saar, and “The Liberation of Aunt Jemima,” with starting the Black women’s movement.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026
The near-decade gap between Bombardier's assembly lines falling silent and De Havilland starting its own saw supply chains wilt.
From Barron's ● Jul. 28, 2026
I have plenty of time to hydrate, claim a good spot near the starting line, and get in the zone.
From "Keeping Pace" by Laurie Morrison
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
