start in on
Idioms-
Begin doing something, as in We started right in on the repairs . Also see start in .
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Attack, especially verbally, as in Nancy keeps starting in on Carl, complaining about the errors in his work . [Early 1900s]
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.
A lot of my gay friends, particularly the eccentric ones, will say the same thing, because when you’re walking down the street looking weird, you never know who might start in on you.
From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 24, 2023
Clemente said another batch of students will start in on the collection when classes resume this fall.
From Washington Times • Jun. 7, 2019
“But Kaitlyn, I’m reading 5,000 words of your diary right now. How can you even start in on this guy for lacking self-awareness?” you might say.
From The Verge • Sep. 1, 2017
Once you’ve solved it, sign up for Slate Plus—now at a special low anniversary price—and start in on this week’s crossword, Kameron Austin Collins’ “AVCX Themeless No. 9.”
From Slate • Sep. 21, 2016
Now everyone would know he’d been out and start in on him.
From "Bridge to Terabithia" by Katherine Paterson
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.
