ORIGINS Synonyms: 74 Similar and Opposite Words

origins

noun

plural of origin

as in sources

a point or place at which something is invented or provided the origins of human language remain a matter of considerable debate

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

as in roots

the source from which something grows or develops the origin of the tradition of giving presents at Christmastime

Synonyms & Similar Words

as in lineages

the line of ancestors from whom a person is descended they could trace their origins back 15 generations

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 origins The origins of El Niño El Niño is a natural climate pattern that starts in the tropical Pacific Ocean. — Ava Berger, NPR, 29 Oct. 2026 Much of the debate since has centered on the origins and evidence in support of that list. — Kevin Rector, Los Angeles Times, 29 Oct. 2026 Mongkolthong said the story raises the possibility that the Nang Mai, long part of Thai belief, may have different origins from the ones taught in Thailand. — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 28 Oct. 2026 For Jason Aaron, writing an authentic Superman story meant looking back at the character’s inherently political origins dating back to the Thirties. — Christopher Cruz, Rolling Stone, 28 Oct. 2026 The march was reminiscent of the organization’s origins 56 years earlier when Chavez led farmworkers on a similar route. — Sacbee.com, 28 Oct. 2026 Prosecutors later told the magistrate judge that the testimony about the origins of the case was not relevant to a probable cause finding, saying those kinds of issues could be raised at a later time. — Sarah N. Lynch, CBS News, 28 Oct. 2026 Origins of structuralism The intellectual origins of structuralist economics are closely tied to the history of economic development in Latin America in the first half of the 20th century. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 27 Oct. 2026 Episode four of VisionQuest digs into Butcherbird’s origins and identity while raising fresh questions about her. — Tasha Robinson, Vulture, 21 Oct. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for origins

Noun

Many of the office’s attorneys, particularly in its misdemeanor corps, work with basement-level spirits, according to one of the sources.

— Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 24 Oct. 2026
Last month, citing anonymous sources, Reuters reported that Solidigm was holding pitch meetings with investment banks for an IPO that could value the company at up to $150 billion.

— Sacbee.com, Sacbee.com, 24 Oct. 2026

Definition of sources

Noun

Erika, 16, is a third-generation Japanese-Brazilian who feels like an outsider in the country she was born in and wants nothing to do with her family’s roots.

— Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 28 Oct. 2026
The Cheesecake Factory The Cheesecake Factory's roots were in Beverly Hills, California, where David Overton opened the first restaurant in 1978 to showcase his mother Evelyn's cheesecakes.

— Deirdre Bardolf, FOXNews.com, 28 Oct. 2026

Definition of roots

Noun

The books below will satisfy your bog witch cravings, while also reminding you of the real-world importance of bogs as bulwarks against climate change, cradles of biodiversity, and keepers of ancestral memory.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 15 Oct. 2026
Soft, dynamic cushioning cradles your feet with every step while providing maximum support, providing transition assistance between launch and landing.

— Amelia McBride, Travel + Leisure, 29 Aug. 2026

Definition of cradles

Noun

Set in the 1980s, the series will follow Marckinkus from his beginnings as Pope Paul VI’s unofficial bodyguard to his tenure at the helm of the Vatican’s finances.

— Ellise Shafer, Variety, 20 Oct. 2026
Murky beginnings Growing up in Weston-super-Mare, Archer was doted on by his mother, who worked as a journalist on the local paper and sent him to Wellington School on a scholarship.

— The Week UK, TheWeek, 17 Oct. 2026

Definition of beginnings

Noun

But Shanes questioned whether grouping Jews under a single ethnic category would produce sufficiently specific data for those purposes, or instead obscure differences among Jewish populations with distinct ancestries.

— Naomi Taxay, Sacbee.com, 28 Aug. 2026
This technique overcomes limitations of older methods like genotyping arrays, which were often biased towards European ancestries and less accurate.

— William A. Haseltine, Forbes.com, 4 Aug. 2026

Definition of ancestries

Noun

Sometimes, though, these genealogies of behavior can seem beside the point, serving only to dull one’s analysis of the situation.

— Jay Caspian Kang, New Yorker, 8 Sep. 2026
The scientists’ method reconstructs genealogies, or maps showing where different pieces of DNA came from and how they were passed down, revealing branches of our evolutionary past.

— Taylor Nicioli, CNN Money, 26 Aug. 2026

Definition of genealogies

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originators

origins

orison

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Style

“Origins.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/origins. Accessed 29 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of origins

noun

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