onset

Definitions

1. 1.A setting about; a beginning. [Obs.] Shak. There is surely no greater wisdom than well to time the beginnings and onsets of things. Bacon.
2. 2.Anything set on, or added, as an ornament or as a useful appendage. [Obs.] Johnson.
3. 3.To assault; to set upon. [Obs.]
4. 4.To set about; to begin. [Obs.] Carew.

Source: Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).

Related questions

• What does "onset" mean?

Reverse-dictionary questions

Definition-first questions whose answer is onset.

• What is a setting about; a beginning. [Obs.] Shak. There is surely no greater wisdom than well to time the beginnings and onsets of things. Bacon called?
• What is anything set on, or added, as an ornament or as a useful appendage. [Obs.] Johnson called?