We show that the set of nonnegative equilibrium-like states, namely, like $(y_d,0)$ of the semilinear vibrating string that can be reached from any non-zero initial state $(y_0,y_1)\in H_0^1(0,1)\times L^2(0,1)$, by varying its axial load and the gain of damping, is dense in the “nonnegative” part of the subspace $L^2(0,1)\times \left\{0\right\}$ of $L^2(0,1)\times H^{-1}(0,1)$. Our main results deal with nonlinear terms which admit at most the linear growth at infinity in $y$ and satisfy certain restriction on their total impact on (0,∞) with respect to the time-variable.