different between onset vs initiative

English

Etymology

From on- +? set. Compare Old English onsettan (“to impose; oppress, bear down”).

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /??n?s?t/
• (US) IPA^(key): /??n?s?t/
• (US, cot–caught merger) IPA^(key): /??n?s?t/

Noun

onset (plural onsets)

1. (archaic) An attack; an assault especially of an army.

   Synonym: storming

   • 1800, William Wordsworth, Six thousand Veterans

     Who on that day the word of onset gave.

2. (medicine) The initial phase of a disease or condition, in which symptoms first become apparent.

3. (phonology) The initial portion of a syllable, preceding the syllable nucleus.

   Synonym: anlaut

   Antonym: coda

   Coordinate terms: nucleus, coda, rime

   Holonym: syllable

4. (acoustics) The beginning of a musical note or other sound, in which the amplitude rises from zero to an initial peak.
5. A setting about; a beginning.

   Synonyms: start, beginning; see also Thesaurus:beginning

   • 1625, Francis Bacon, Of Delays

     There is surely no greater wisdom than well to time the beginnings and onsets of things.
6. (obsolete) Anything added, such as an ornament or as a useful appendage.
   • 1592, William Shakespeare , Titus Andronicus, Act 1, Scene 1

     And will with deeds requite thy gentleness:

     And, for an onset, Titus, to advance

     Thy name and honourable family,

     Lavinia will I make my empress.

Translations

Verb

onset (third-person singular simple present onsets, present participle onsetting, simple past and past participle onset)

1. (obsolete) To assault; to set upon.
2. (obsolete) To set about; to begin.

References

• onset in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.

Anagrams

• 'onest, ETNOs, Eston, SONET, Stone, notes, onest, set on, seton, steno, steno-, stone, tones

English

Etymology

From French initiative, from Medieval Latin *initiativus (“serving to initiate”), from Late Latin initiare (“to begin, Latin initiate”), from Latin initium (“beginning”), from ineo (“enter, begin”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /??n???t?v/
• Rhymes: -???t?v

Adjective

initiative (not comparable)

1. Serving to initiate; inceptive; initiatory; introductory; preliminary.
2. In which voter initiatives can be brought to the ballot.
   • a. 2008, John G. Matsusaka, "Direct Democracy and the Executive Branch", in, 2008, Shaun Bowler and Amihai Glazer, editors, Direct Democracy's Impact on American Political Institutions, Palgrave Macmillan, ?ISBN, page 122 [1]:

     The second row shows that initiative states fill more constitutional offices by election than noninitiative states, and the difference is statistically significant after controlling for region and population.

Antonyms

• noninitiative

Translations

Noun

initiative (countable and uncountable, plural initiatives)

1. A beginning; a first move.
2. A new development; a fresh approach to something; a new way of dealing with a problem.
3. The ability to act first or on one's own.
4. An issue to be voted on, brought to the ballot by a sufficient number of signatures from among the voting public.

Synonyms

• (issue to be voted on): direct initiative

Derived terms

• direct initiative

Related terms

Translations

Further reading

• initiative in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• initiative in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
• initiative at OneLook Dictionary Search

French

Etymology

From *Medieval Latin initiativus (“serving to initiate”), from Late Latin initiare (“to begin, Latin initiate”), from Latin initium (“beginning”), from ineo (“enter, begin”).

Pronunciation

Noun

initiative f (plural initiatives)

1. initiative
   • Prendre l'initiative.

Derived terms

• syndicat d'initiative

Further reading

• “initiative” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).