begin with
IdiomsExample Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The 41-year-old Vance looked exhausted as he left Pakistan on Sunday after 21 hours that failed to produce an agreement with Tehran to end a war he had never wanted to begin with.
From Barron's • Apr. 13, 2026
That he didn’t follow through makes issuing the threat, to begin with, a huge strategic blunder.
From Slate • Apr. 8, 2026
The “last line of defense” is shooting down drones, but the goal is to avoid ending up in that situation to begin with, he said.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 7, 2026
Was it really such a big deal to begin with?
From Salon • Apr. 7, 2026
It was a small car to begin with and there was barely room for them.
From "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
