onset

[ on-set, awn- ]

noun

1. a beginning or start:

   the onset of winter.

2. an assault or attack:

   an onset of the enemy.

3. Phonetics. the segment of a syllable preceding the nucleus, as the gr in great. Compare coda ( def 5 ), core ¹( def 14 ).

onset

/ ˈɒnˌsɛt /

noun

1. an attack; assault
2. a start; beginning

Word History and Origins

Origin of onset¹

1525–35; on + set, after the verb phrase set on

Example Sentences

Perhaps it was Babitz’s lack of self-discipline, or her excessive drug use, or the incipient onset of Huntington’s disease, which would eventually take her life.

From Los Angeles Times

Romeo, who is still at sea and unavailable for comment, has been obsessed with Earhart since childhood, and finding the aviator’s aircraft would have been the culmination of a dream set into motion after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

From Los Angeles Times

Hunt said she struggled from the onset, with people questioning her qualifications at every turn and suggesting she was too young to understand her constituents’ needs.

From Slate

Vaccinations could improve the winged creatures’ chances of surviving the onset of white-nose syndrome, according to Smith, but injecting individual bats is laborious.

From Los Angeles Times

The rise last year was higher than the previous 12 months, due to record fires in Canada, and the onset of the El Niño weather event all adding to ongoing emissions from fossil fuels.

From BBC

Related Words

• commencement
• dawning
• onslaught
• outbreak
• outset