Showing results for "beginning"

• present participle of begin.

beginning

American  

[bih-gin-ing] / bɪˈgɪn ɪŋ /

noun

• beginnings
  plural

1. an act or circumstance of entering upon an action or state.

   the beginning of hostilities.

   Synonyms:

   inception, inauguration, initiation

   Antonyms:

   ending

2. the point of time or space at which anything begins.

   the beginning of the Christian era; the beginning of the route.

   Synonyms:

   emergence, onset, outset, commencement, start

   Antonyms:

   end

3. the first part.

   the beginning of the book; the beginning of the month.

4. Often beginnings. the initial stage or part of anything.

   the beginnings of science.

5. origin; source; first cause.

   A misunderstanding about the rent was the beginning of their quarrel.

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adjective

1. just formed.

   a beginning company.

2. first; opening.

   the beginning chapters of a book.

3. basic or introductory.

   beginning Spanish.

4. learning the fundamentals.

   a beginning swimmer.

beginning British  

/ bɪˈɡɪnɪŋ /

noun

1. a start; commencement

2. (often plural) a first or early part or stage

3. the place where or time when something starts

4. an origin; source

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Usage

Spelling tips for beginning The word beginning is hard to spell for two reasons. It doesn't simply combine the base word (begin) with the suffix -ing, as is done in other easy-to-remember words that end in -ing, like starting and talking. Also, it can be tempting to use a double g (beggining) instead of a double n. How to spell beginning: To spell beginning, you take the base word begin and add an n at the end. Then, add the suffix -ing. Why do you need an extra n? Because you should begin right Now.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• beginnings
  plural

Etymology

Origin of beginning

First recorded in 1175–1225, beginning is from the Middle English word beginnung, begonning. See begin, -ing ¹

Explanation

The beginning is the first part or section of something, or the place where it starts. You watch the opening credits at the beginning of a movie. "In the beginning," says the beginning of the Bible, "God created the heavens and the earth." Beginning can mean the act of starting something (the day after Thanksgiving is the beginning of the Christmas shopping season), or it can mean the time when something will start (Beginning at noon, all Christmas ornaments will go on sale.) Beginning can also refer to the origin of something, its root or source, as the beginning of the Mississippi River is Lake Itasca, Minnesota.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

beginning beginnings

A fresh round of tariffs announced at the beginning of the second quarter “will be challenging to offset in the short term without losing market share,” Lindquist said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026

Last night they danced all night long from the very beginning.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026

But Rainey also noted “some incremental pressure on the consumer relative to the beginning of the year” as gas prices have risen.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 21, 2026

"The important thing is not to let this be the beginning of the demise of international rule of law."

From Barron's ● Aug. 21, 2026

It was mid-afternoon and the light was beginning to fail when he stopped.

From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver

A study published in Nature now offers a possible explanation for how caregiving emerged from those distant, nonparental beginnings.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 1, 2026

In Episode 3 of By the People, equal-marriage campaign architect Marc Solomon joins Dahlia Lithwick and Mark Joseph Stern to trace the movement’s “quixotic” beginnings in 2001.

From Slate ● Aug. 1, 2026

Latitude Festival is marking its 20th anniversary this year and from small beginnings has become a four-day music and culture event attracting a total crowd of about 135,000 people.

From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2026

Concessionaires have been in Yosemite since its beginnings, as the federal government didn’t have the money to construct its own amenities in the 1850s, he said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026

In spite of the saints, his mother and his father, the warnings he had heard from his earliest beginnings, he had sinned with his hands a sin that was hard to forgive.

From "Go Tell It on the Mountain" by James Baldwin

Related Words

• birth
• creation
• dawn
• inauguration
• inception
• introduction
• onset
• opening
• outset
• starting point
• top