begin
verb (used without object)
to proceed to perform the first or earliest part of some action; commence; start.
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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:
Mysteriously, and conveniently, a fire broke out and destroyed both the structures and their contents on the very day accounting was scheduled to begin in June 1923.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 6, 2026
Presidential hopefuls typically begin putting together exploratory committees soon after the midterms, announce their candidacies after the new year and begin fundraising by midyear.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 6, 2026
Tesla also aims to begin selling the Cybercab — a gold-toned two-seater vehicle that lacks a steering wheel or pedals — to the public by the end of the year.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 6, 2026
A notable difference emerged in how frequently patients were advised to begin taking statins.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 6, 2026
“Joseph,” I begin, foundering well beyond my depth.
From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse
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 Magic Johnson and Billie Jean King, part of the group that owns the Dodgers and Sparks.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 27, 2026
Begin with Kewpie mayonnaise — richer, silkier, faintly sweet, and unapologetically egg-forward.
From Salon ● Apr. 14, 2026
Begin with bulky items, like underused furniture, she advised, and move on to clothing.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 19, 2026
Begin with some vocal exploration with speech, just getting them to loosen up and find their high, light head voice.
From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin
Richard Wagner’s “Ring” begins before there is a world.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 6, 2026
However, when the film begins, its characters sincerely think that Godzilla, last seen crumbling to smithereens in the Pacific, is dead.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 6, 2026
England's autumn campaign begins against Australia on Sunday.
From BBC ● Nov. 6, 2026
When COP31 begins Monday in Antalya, summit host Turkey is hoping to show off its best side with a campaign focused on renewable energies and electrification.
From Barron's ● Nov. 6, 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
Potential candidates began putting down markers swiftly this week.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 6, 2026
This comes nearly three years after deliveries first began and seven years after Tesla teased the stainless-steel truck that some have compared to a “trapezoid on wheels.”
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 6, 2026
A month before deliveries finally began, Musk conceded that Tesla “dug our own grave with Cybertruck.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 6, 2026
He began experiencing severe headaches and a few days later told his family his breathing was becoming more difficult.
From BBC ● Nov. 6, 2026
Cocky leaned down and began gathering up the broken bits of cup.
From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom
By then, however, the thrill had begun to waste away, like the tuberculosis patients in Thomas Mann’s novel “The Magic Mountain.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 6, 2026
Settlers had begun crossing the Appalachians to give the newly independent country a growing stake in Louisiana.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 6, 2026
To help address this problem, Lopez has begun testing insecticides to determine which treatments might effectively control the beetles.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 6, 2026
Don’t give up before you have even begun.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 5, 2026
“When we’ve just begun our business here. And you bring such disgrace, such scandal to our name!”
From "The Red Car to Hollywood" by Jennie Liu
That’s just the beginning of the real trouble.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 6, 2026
Nunez has said that since the beginning of the high-school protest movement police had acted with "the greatest proportionality".
From Barron's ● Nov. 6, 2026
Trump's communications director Steven Cheung called Miller "someone who has been with the President since the very beginning".
From BBC ● Nov. 6, 2026
At the beginning, we were none of us technological visionaries, but I at least had been online for a while, since even before the web itself existed.
From Slate ● Nov. 6, 2026
An hour passed, and when the audience ran out of questions, Emily-the.bookstore-person got the line started, beginning with the first row.
From "Bye Forever, I Guess" by Jodi Meadows
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
