"initiates" in the noun sense

1. novice, beginner, tyro, tiro, initiate

someone new to a field or activity

2. initiate, learned person, pundit, savant

someone who has been admitted to membership in a scholarly field

3. initiate, enlightened

people who have been introduced to the mysteries of some field or activity

"it is very familiar to the initiate"

"initiates" in the verb sense

1. originate, initiate, start

bring into being

"He initiated a new program"

"Start a foundation"

2. initiate, pioneer

take the lead or initiative in participate in the development of

"This South African surgeon pioneered heart transplants"

3. initiate, induct

accept people into an exclusive society or group, usually with some rite

"African men are initiated when they reach puberty"

4. broach, initiate

bring up a topic for discussion

5. lead up, initiate

set in motion, start an event or prepare the way for

"Hitler's attack on Poland led up to World War II"

Source: WordNet® (An amazing lexical database of English)

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