begin
verb (used without object)
to proceed to perform the first or earliest part of some action; commence; start.
begin
1 American
[bih-gin]
/ bɪˈgɪn /
verb (used without object)
-
begins,
present (3rd person singular)
-
began,
past
-
begun,
past participle
-
beginning
present participle
-
to proceed to perform the first or earliest part of some action; commence; start.
The story begins with their marriage.
- Antonyms:
- end
-
to come into existence; arise; originate.
The custom began during the Civil War.
verb (used with object)
-
begins,
present (3rd person singular)
-
began,
past
-
begun,
past participle
-
beginning
present participle
-
to proceed to perform the first or earliest part of (some action).
Begin the job tomorrow.
-
to originate; be the originator of.
civic leaders who began the reform movement.
- Synonyms:
- initiate, inaugurate, institute
-
to succeed to the slightest extent in (followed by an infinitive).
The money won't even begin to cover expenses.
Begin
2
American
[bay-gin]
/ ˈbeɪ gɪn /
noun
begin
1
British
/ bɪˈɡɪn /
verb
-
to start or cause to start (something or to do something)
-
to bring or come into being for the first time; arise or originate
-
to start to say or speak
-
(used with a negative) to have the least capacity (to do something)
he couldn't begin to compete with her
-
in the first place
Begin
2
British
/ ˈbɛɡɪn /
noun
begin
Idioms
Synonym Usage
Begin, commence, initiate, start (when followed by noun or gerund) refer to setting into motion or progress something that continues for some time. Begin is the common term: to begin knitting a sweater. Commence is a more formal word, often suggesting a more prolonged or elaborate beginning: to commence proceedings in court. Initiate implies an active and often ingenious first act in a new field: to initiate a new procedure. Start means to make a first move or to set out on a course of action: to start paving a street.
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
beginsimple
-
beginssimple
-
have begunperfect
-
has begunperfect
-
am beginningprogressive
-
are beginningprogressive
-
is beginningprogressive
-
have been beginningperfect progressive
-
has been beginningperfect progressive
Past
-
begansimple
-
had begunperfect
-
was beginningprogressive
-
were beginningprogressive
-
had been beginningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of begin
First recorded before 1000; Middle English beginnen, Old English beginnan, equivalent to be- be- + -ginnan “to begin,” perhaps originally “to open,” akin to yawn
Explanation
To begin is to start. When it begins to snow, every flake looks pretty, drifting gently down from the dark sky. When you begin something, you go ahead with its first part or stage — you can begin the day with a good attitude, or begin a very long book over and over again, always falling asleep before you get to chapter two. You also might begin a journey by lacing up your hiking boots. Things also begin when they have a specific element as a first part, as when a word begins with the letter T.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Interventions that begin before extensive damage occurs could potentially do more to preserve memory and other cognitive abilities.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 15, 2026
The legal fight then escalated in October, when the NPS began to cut down hundreds of trees without notifying Reyes until 15 hours before work was set to begin.
From BBC ● Nov. 15, 2026
Under the new calendar the electoral commission published on Facebook, registration was still due to begin Saturday.
From Barron's ● Nov. 14, 2026
A multilateral agreement might begin with an extended moratorium on training new models, which is both resource-intensive and the source of the greatest risk.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 13, 2026
However, you must save the skin, as well as the baby teeth, which will begin to fall out at about the same time.
From "Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher" by Bruce Coville
Begin in the same starting position as exercise No. 3.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026
By rapidly distributing footage of troops entering the fortress, the military echoed a famous 1982 image showing then-defence minister Ariel Sharon and prime minister Menahem Begin at the same spot.
From Barron's ● Jun. 2, 2026
Begin with a modest roux — butter and flour, cooked together until they smell faintly nutty.
From Salon ● Apr. 7, 2026
On his ninth try, in 1977, Begin wrested power from the Labor party.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 28, 2025
Begin with an introduction that establishes the purpose for all the information that’s to follow.
From "The Thing About Jellyfish" by Ali Benjamin
But if he is serious – and Riner says he never does anything half-heartedly - that's not how he became an Olympic champion – then the hard work begins now.
From BBC ● Nov. 15, 2026
As “Bitter Christmas” begins, however, Elsa is sidelined by a debilitating migraine.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 13, 2026
In contrast, magma that begins crystallizing earlier becomes more viscous and tends to ascend more slowly.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 13, 2026
But his interest begins with the material elements of a book—its layout and print, the density of text on its pages—and how these features shape our reading experiences.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 12, 2026
“Don’t speak of what I said to you. I cannot bear the shame. I would apologize, but words are too meager. There is no excuse for it. Firing me only begins to right the wrong.”
From "Not Nothing" by Gayle Forman
Arter then began crying "crocodile tears" and conducting performative CPR despite Rebekah's lips being blue, according to Andrew, who says Arter's explanation of what happened kept changing.
From BBC ● Nov. 15, 2026
Nissan has introduced two generations of hybrid vehicles in other markets, but began working a few years ago on a version better suited to US driving conditions.
From Barron's ● Nov. 15, 2026
The researchers began with six years of EKG recordings from Sweden's unified healthcare system.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 15, 2026
Not long after L3Harris installed a new router made by HPE’s Juniper Networks at the Arkansas location, the machine began sending out a high volume of data Friday afternoon.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 15, 2026
Her world consisted of this cubicle and the corridor outside—and soon I began to see the wisdom of this narrowed vision, and why prisoners instinctively shied away from questions about their larger lives.
From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom
After spending years investigating how people can improve their emotional well-being, Coles has begun considering a broader question.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 14, 2026
Before they’d even begun shooting, Cunningham announced the project with an ad in Variety: “Friday the 13th—The Most Terrifying Film Ever Made!”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 13, 2026
He has now spent more than six years in jail without his trial having begun.
From BBC ● Nov. 13, 2026
But his fight has only just begun, as he’s diagnosed with cancer the following year.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 13, 2026
“There was only one logical explanation. The Germans had begun using a machine to generate ciphers.”
From "The Bletchley Riddle" by Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin
Downdetector had previously shown hundreds of thousands of users in more than 70 countries reporting problems beginning Thursday and stretching into Friday.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 14, 2026
At the beginning of the study, people with high and low ARC scores showed no obvious differences in cognitive performance.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 14, 2026
Shares of the Dell have tumbled over 20% since the beginning of November.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 14, 2026
It states: “Officers of the Conference are subject to election by the Conference beginning no earlier than in December prior to the start of the next Congress or whenever a vacancy occurs.”
From Slate ● Nov. 14, 2026
But Darlene, at least, started right from the beginning.
From "Firegirl" by Tony Abbott
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