Meaning & use
fresh start
Last updated
Meaning
nouncountable
a new beginning that allows you to forget past problems and do something again in a better way
Grammar: Usually used with 'a' or 'the': We need a fresh start. It can be plural: They made several fresh starts.
Patterns
- a fresh start in something
- a fresh start for someone
- make a fresh start
After the divorce, she moved to a new city and made a fresh start.
The new manager promised a fresh start for the struggling company.
Moving to a different school gave him a fresh start.
Word forms
| plural | fresh starts |
|---|
Common combinations
- make a fresh start
- He decided to make a fresh start after losing his job.
- a fresh start in life
- Winning the scholarship was a fresh start in life for her.
- give someone a fresh start
- The judge gave the young offender a fresh start.
- need a fresh start
- I feel like I need a fresh start somewhere else.
Synonyms and how they differ
- new beginning
- Very similar, but often used in a more emotional or dramatic way: a new beginning after a tragedy.
- clean slate
- Focuses on having no past mistakes held against you; often used in school or work contexts.
Commonly confused: fresh start or fresh?
fresh start vs fresh
As an adjective, 'fresh' means new or recently made, but it does not by itself mean a new beginning. You need the noun 'start' to make the phrase.
Practice
After the scandal, the politician hoped to make a ______ start.
Choose one answer.
'Fresh start' is the fixed expression. 'New start' is possible but less common and less idiomatic here. 'Clean start' is not standard; 'clean slate' is the correct phrase for that idea. 'Recent start' does not make sense.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “fresh start”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.