BEGIN | Meaning, Definition In Cambridge English Dictionary

Meaning of begin in English beginverb [ I or T ] uk /bɪˈɡɪn/ us /bɪˈɡɪn/ present participle beginning | past tense began | past participle begun

begin verb [I or T] (START TO HAPPEN)

Add to word list Add to word list A1 to start to happen or exist: What time does the concert begin? The bridge was begun five years ago and the estimated cost has already doubled. The film they want to watch begins at seven. The meeting began promisingly, but then things started to go wrong. to begin to (make something) happen

• startHurry up – the film has already started.
• beginThe ceremony is about to begin.
• commenceThe meeting commenced with a moment of silence.
• openThe meeting opened with a short word of welcome to new members.
• originateThe idea for the business originated with my grandmother's recipes.

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• The plane began to make its final descent into the airport.
• Stir the sauce gently until it begins to boil.

Starting and beginning

• be in the first flush of idiom
• be/get in on the ground floor idiom
• become
• branch out into something/doing something
• branch out phrasal verb
• develop
• ground level
• grow
• half-cock
• hansel
• here
• here goes! idiom
• motion
• sail in phrasal verb
• start on something phrasal verb
• start out phrasal verb
• start/set/get the ball rolling idiom
• starting
• starting block
• wheel

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begin verb [I or T] (START TO DO)

A2 to start to do something: I began the book six months ago, but I can't seem to finish it. [ + -ing verb ] Jane has just begun learning to drive. If you want to learn to play a musical instrument, it might be a good idea to begin on something simple. [ + to infinitive ] After waiting for half an hour she was beginning to get angry. I have so much to tell you, I don't know where to begin. to start to do something

• beginI'll begin working on the project this weekend.
• startHave you started your homework yet?
• commenceWe commenced listening to Uncle Jim's long story, knowing we were in for it now.
• embark on/upon somethingThat fateful morning, she embarked upon the longest solo climb in history.
• enter on/upon somethingWith his diagnosis, we entered upon the most difficult time of our lives.

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• The audience was becoming restless as they waited for the performance to begin.
• You will begin to feel sleepy as the drug enters your bloodstream.
• She cleared her throat nervously before she began to speak.

Starting and beginning

• be in the first flush of idiom
• be/get in on the ground floor idiom
• become
• branch out into something/doing something
• branch out phrasal verb
• develop
• ground level
• grow
• half-cock
• hansel
• here
• here goes! idiom
• motion
• sail in phrasal verb
• start on something phrasal verb
• start out phrasal verb
• start/set/get the ball rolling idiom
• starting
• starting block
• wheel

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begin verb [I or T] (START SPEAKING)

to start speaking: [ + speech ] "Well," he began. "I don't quite know how to tell you this." Starting and beginning

• be in the first flush of idiom
• be/get in on the ground floor idiom
• become
• branch out into something/doing something
• branch out phrasal verb
• develop
• ground level
• grow
• half-cock
• hansel
• here
• here goes! idiom
• motion
• sail in phrasal verb
• start on something phrasal verb
• start out phrasal verb
• start/set/get the ball rolling idiom
• starting
• starting block
• wheel

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begin verb [I or T] (FIRST PART)

to have something as the first part: The word "cat" begins with the letter "c". Starting and beginning

• be in the first flush of idiom
• be/get in on the ground floor idiom
• become
• branch out into something/doing something
• branch out phrasal verb
• develop
• ground level
• grow
• half-cock
• hansel
• here
• here goes! idiom
• motion
• sail in phrasal verb
• start on something phrasal verb
• start out phrasal verb
• start/set/get the ball rolling idiom
• starting
• starting block
• wheel

See more results »

Grammar

Begin or start?We can use the verbs begin and start to mean the same thing but begin is more formal than start. Begin is an irregular verb. Its past simple form is began and its -ed form is begun: …

Idioms

to begin with can't (even) begin (Definition of begin from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

begin | American Dictionary

beginverb [ I/T ] us /bɪˈɡɪn/ present participle beginning | past tense began us/bɪˈɡæn/ | past participle begun us/bɪˈɡʌn/ Add to word list Add to word list to do or be the first part of something that continues; start: [ T ] He begins his new job on Monday. [ I ] The movie begins at seven. [ I ] I began by explaining why I had come.

Idiom

to begin with (Definition of begin from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press) What is the pronunciation of begin, Begin?

Translations of begin

in Chinese (Traditional) 開始, 開始進行（或存在）, 著手（於）… See more in Chinese (Simplified) 开始, 开始进行（或存在）, 着手（于）… See more in Spanish empezar, comenzar, iniciarse… See more in Portuguese começar, iniciar… See more in Marathi in Japanese in Turkish in French in Catalan in Dutch in Tamil in Hindi in Gujarati in Danish in Swedish in Malay in German in Norwegian in Urdu in Ukrainian in Telugu in Bengali in Czech in Indonesian in Thai in Vietnamese in Polish in Korean in Italian सुरुवात, आरंभ, एखाद्या गोष्टीची सुरुवात करणे.… See more 始まる, ～し始める, ～を開始する… See more başlamak, olmaya başlamak… See more commencer, débuter, commencer (à)… See more començar… See more beginnen… See more நடக்கத் தொடங்க அல்லது ஆரம்பிக்க, ஆரம்பிக்க அல்லது ஏதாவது செய்ய தொடங்க… See more शुरू होना या अस्तित्व में आना, (कुछ) शुरू करना… See more શરૂઆત, આરંભ, શરૂ કરવું… See more begynde… See more börja… See more bermula… See more anfangen… See more begynne… See more شروع کرنا, آغاز کرنا, شروع ہونا… See more починати(ся)… See more మొదలగు లేదా ఉనికిలోఉండు, ఏదైనా పని మొదలు పెట్టడం… See more ঘটতে শুরু করা অথবা বিদ্যমান থাকতে শুরু করা, কিছু করতে শুরু করা… See more začít… See more memulai… See more เริ่ม… See more bắt đầu… See more zaczynać, zaczynać się, zaczynać (się)… See more 시작하다, -하기 시작하다… See more cominciare, iniziare… See more Need a translator?

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beggars can't be choosers idiom begged begging begging bowl begin beginner Beginner's All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code beginner's luck beginners' slope {{#randomImageQuizHook.filename}} {{#randomImageQuizHook.isQuiz}} Test your vocabulary with our fun image quizzes Try a quiz now {{/randomImageQuizHook.isQuiz}} {{^randomImageQuizHook.isQuiz}} {{/randomImageQuizHook.isQuiz}} {{/randomImageQuizHook.filename}}

More meanings of begin

• re-begin, at rebegin
• can't (even) begin idiom
• to begin with idiom
• start/begin to bite

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• can't (even) begin idiom
• to begin with idiom

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the mother of all something

an extreme example of something

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• English   
  • Verb 
    • begin (START TO HAPPEN)
    • begin (START TO DO)
    • begin (START SPEAKING)
    • begin (FIRST PART)
• American   Verb

• Translations
• Grammar
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