Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- transitive verb To set going by taking the first step; begin: synonym: begin.
- transitive verb To introduce to a new field, interest, skill, or activity.
- transitive verb To admit (someone) into membership, as with a ritual or ceremony.
- adjective Initiated or admitted, as to membership or a position of authority.
- adjective Introduced to something new, such as a new field of knowledge.
- noun One who is being or has been initiated into an organization.
- noun One who has been introduced to or has attained some knowledge in a particular field.
from The Century Dictionary.
- To begin or enter upon; make a beginning of; introduce; set going or on foot.
- To introduce by preliminary instruction or forms; guide primarily; admit formally; induct: as, to
initiate a person into an art, or into a society. - To do the first act; perform the first rite; take the initiative.
- Pertaining or incident to the beginning or introduction; initial or initiatory.
- Initiated; commencing; introduced to knowledge; prepared for instruction.
- noun One who is initiated; specifically, one who has been admitted to a knowledge of or participation in secret doctrines, mystic rites, or the like.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- transitive verb To introduce by a first act; to make a beginning with; to set afoot; to originate; to commence; to begin or enter upon.
- transitive verb To acquaint with the beginnings; to instruct in the rudiments or principles; to introduce.
- transitive verb To introduce into a society or organization; to confer membership on; especially, to admit to a secret order with mysterious rites or ceremonies.
- adjective obsolete Unpracticed; untried; new.
- adjective Begun; commenced; introduced to, or instructed in, the rudiments; newly admitted.
- adjective (Law) said of a husband who becomes such in his wife's estate of inheritance by the birth of a child, but whose estate is not consummated till the death of the wife.
- noun One who is, or is to be, initiated.
- intransitive verb rare To do the first act; to perform the first rite; to take the initiative.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun A new
member of an organization. - noun One who has been through a ceremony of
initiation . - verb To
begin ; tostart . - verb To
instruct in the rudiments or principles; tointroduce . - verb To confer membership on; especially, to admit to a secret order with mysterious rites or ceremonies.
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- verb set in motion, start an event or prepare the way for
- verb bring up a topic for discussion
- verb accept people into an exclusive society or group, usually with some rite
- noun someone who has been admitted to membership in a scholarly field
- noun someone new to a field or activity
- verb bring into being
- noun people who have been introduced to the mysteries of some field or activity
- verb take the lead or initiative in; participate in the development of
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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On Friday, all 41 Republican senators sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nevada, asking that the current version of the legislation be set aside and that Democrats again initiate bipartisan negotiations with the Republicans.
McConnell: There's a bailout fund in current Wall St. reform bill 2010
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Maybe she thinks a third war for the US to initiate is a proper course of action?
Palin warns of 'Second Holocaust' if Iran gains nuclear weapons 2010
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Facinelli's latest initiate is Kat Dennings, who we revealed yesterday has just joined the cast of "Thor."
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The initiate is encouraged to eat as much as she can, especially meat and broth, which are thought to strengthen. 54
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BUT .... the debate that Sunstein seems itching to initiate is whether there is a movement to rollback the constitutional viewpoint that has evolved since the New Deal.
The Volokh Conspiracy » Is “The Constitution in Exile” A Myth?: 2004
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This post reminds me of the scene in Animal House where the fraternity initiate is being spanked repeatedly with a paddle and all he knows is to respond, “THANK YOU SIR MAY I HAVE ANOTHER?!”
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Train -- initiate, or early instruct. the way -- literally, "his way," that selected for him in which he should go; for early training secures habitual walking in it.
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It has been 3-years in the making for Wal-Mart to simply get their pallets and master cases outfitted with RFID tags, and that initiate is still not complete, and won’t be for at least another 2-5 years.
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Occult, on the other hand, indicates something secret and available only to the so-called initiate—a totally different kind of understanding.
CREATE YOUR OWN FUTURE Jennifer Ann Daddio 2003
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Occult, on the other hand, indicates something secret and available only to the so-called initiate—a totally different kind of understanding.
CREATE YOUR OWN FUTURE Jennifer Ann Daddio 2003
oroboros commented on the word initiate
Tyro, neophyte, novice; instigate, cause.
November 22, 2007