be ‧ gin S1 W1 /bɪˈɡɪn/ BrE AmE verb ( past tense began /-ˈɡæn/, past participle begun /-ˈɡʌn/, present participle beginning )
[ Word Family: noun : ↑ beginner , ↑ beginning ; verb : ↑ begin ]
[ Language: Old English ; Origin: beginnan ]
1 . START DOING SOMETHING [intransitive and transitive] to start doing something:
As everybody’s here, let’s begin.
In the third year students begin the study of classical Chinese.
The president begins talks with the prime minister tonight.
begin to do something
She began to feel a sense of panic.
begin doing something
I began teaching in 1984.
2 . START HAPPENING [intransitive and transitive] if something begins, or you begin something, it starts to happen or exist from a particular time:
It was the coldest winter since records began.
begin at
The meeting begins at 10.30 am.
3 . DO FIRST [intransitive] if you begin with something or begin by doing something, this is the first thing you do
begin with
Shall we begin with a prayer?
begin by doing something
I’ll begin by thanking you all for being here tonight.
4 . BOOK/WORD ETC [intransitive] if a book, film, or word begins with something, it starts with a particular event or letter
begin with
‘Psychosis’ begins with a P.
REGISTER
In everyday English, people usually say start rather than begin :
▪
The movie starts at 7.45.
▪
Let’s start by introducing ourselves.
▪
Not many English names start with X.
5 . SPEECH [intransitive and transitive] to start speaking:
‘Ladies and gentlemen,’ he began. ‘I am delighted to be here.’
6 . to begin with
a) spoken used to introduce the first and most important point you want to make:
Well, to begin with, he shouldn’t even have been driving my car.
b) used to say that something was already in a particular condition before something else happened:
I didn’t break it! It was like that to begin with.
c) during the first part of a process or activity:
The kids helped me to begin with, but they soon got bored.
7 . can’t begin to understand/imagine etc spoken used to emphasize how difficult something is to understand etc:
I can’t begin to imagine how awful it was.
begin (something) as something phrasal verb
to be a particular thing at the start of your existence, working life etc:
Roger began his career as an office boy.