begin
verb (used without object)
to proceed to perform the first or earliest part of some action; commence; start.
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to begin.
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
[bey-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:
Researchers say measurements of accelerated aging could eventually help doctors identify younger people who face unusually high cancer risks, potentially allowing prevention or screening to begin earlier.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 14, 2026
Patrols by private security guards are to begin from Monday at three Essex locations that asylum seekers frequently visit, a council has confirmed.
From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2026
Only after Zverev held a two-set lead did Shelton begin to show some signs of life.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 13, 2026
"We certainly need to begin to act urgently to address the challenges that exist," House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said in an interview Sunday on ABC.
From Barron's ● Sep. 13, 2026
"I suggest we begin our forest journey as soon as we can. It will be noon in about an hour, by my reckoning."
From "Rowan of Rin" by Emily Rodda
Begin in the same starting position as exercise No. 3.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026
Begin with Kewpie mayonnaise — richer, silkier, faintly sweet, and unapologetically egg-forward.
From Salon ● Apr. 14, 2026
The latest example is a report from Jefferies titled “From Asimov to the Assembly Line: Humanoid Robots Begin to Clock In.”
From Barron's ● Mar. 25, 2026
Begin with the obvious fact: He’s got the vocal chops.
From MarketWatch ● Dec. 24, 2025
“We’ve got to make plans, Pa. Begin the journey,” Father says excitedly.
From "Will’s Race for Home" by Jewell Parker Rhodes
Scientists have long known a great deal about how inflammation begins.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 13, 2026
Because ectopic pregnancies usually cause complications before standard prenatal care begins around 10 weeks, patients often rely on emergency departments, where doctors don’t typically have specialized training in pregnancy care.
From Salon ● Sep. 13, 2026
Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go, begins with Meghan, along with her husband Prince Harry, walking along a country path as she turns and says "come on, you".
From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2026
However, Illinois exempts retirement-account withdrawals and pension income, so when Earl begins taking required withdrawals from his IRA at 73, they will pay a little more in Arizona.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 13, 2026
It begins pulling the rest of its body through the force field, widening the hole so it can come through.
From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer
Their analysis showed that magma began rising from a depth of about 22 km.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 14, 2026
Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the U.S. began to indict Russian oligarchs and seize yachts and other assets.
From Salon ● Sep. 14, 2026
All the momentum was with the visitors on the Saturday night, but it was soon washed away as the rain drenched Sunday singles began.
From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026
What began as a practical update for a handful of friends eventually attracted followers in London, Berlin and Tokyo — people who checked in daily to see whether the surf was firing in Venice Beach.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2026
Max flipped it back out to me as Sadie was finishing with the last of her customers and the people coming in for the midnight movies began to snag their seats.
From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith
That work has already begun to influence chemistry education.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 14, 2026
In effect, a threat to make Canada the 51st state is pushing America’s northern neighbor so close to Europe that leaders have begun to half-in-jest dub it the EU’s newest member.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 13, 2026
Though the government announced last month that it would shorten the work day for public sector employees to ease the electricity crisis, several parts of Caracas have begun experiencing power cuts.
From Barron's ● Sep. 12, 2026
Leading AI companies have begun using their most advanced models to train new ones — a process known as recursive self-improvement that could eventually drive intelligence growth beyond human control.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026
Decades of conservation efforts have begun to pay off.
From "Camp Panda" by Catherine Thimmesh
In this case, magma rose rapidly from much deeper in the mantle, beginning roughly 24 to 30 km below the surface.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 14, 2026
But the better question is: If it hikes, is this one adjustment or the beginning of another tightening cycle?
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 14, 2026
So I was a bit surprised when John Angelos said that he would like to see me at the beginning of the summer of 2023.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 13, 2026
Many knew from the beginning that we would end up here.
From Salon ● Sep. 13, 2026
By Thursday morning, when Jeff was still at it with his “Cobra, Cobraman, oh, yeah,” a thought was beginning to grow inside me, as if it was swimming up from somewhere deep down.
From "Firegirl" by Tony Abbott
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.
