begin in WordNet English dictionary

1. take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
   "We began working at dawn"; "Who will start?"; "Get working as soon as the sun rises!"; "The first tourists began to arrive in Cambodia"; "He began early in the day"; "Let's get down to work now"
   get down  begin  get  start out  start  set about  set out  commence 
   
2. set in motion, cause to start
   "The U.S. started a war in the Middle East"; "The Iraqis began hostilities"; "begin a new chapter in your life"
   begin  lead off  start  commence 
   
3. begin to speak or say
   "Now listen, friends," he began
   begin 
   
4. begin to speak, understand, read, and write a language
   "She began Russian at an early age"; "We started French in fourth grade"
   begin 
   
5. achieve or accomplish in the least degree, usually used in the negative
   "This economic measure doesn't even begin to deal with the problem of inflation"; "You cannot even begin to understand the problem we had to deal with during the war"
   begin 
   
6. begin an event that is implied and limited by the nature or inherent function of the direct object
   "begin a cigar"; "She started the soup while it was still hot"; "We started physics in 10th grade"
   begin  start 
   
7. have a beginning, in a temporal, spatial, or evaluative sense
   "The DMZ begins right over the hill"; "The second movement begins after the Allegro"; "Prices for these homes start at $250,000"
   begin  start 
   
8. be the first item or point, constitute the beginning or start, come first in a series
   "The number `one' begins the sequence"; "A terrible murder begins the novel"; "The convocation ceremony officially begins the semester"
   begin 
   
9. have a beginning characterized in some specified way
   "The novel begins with a murder"; "My property begins with the three maple trees"; "Her day begins with a workout"; "The semester begins with a convocation ceremony"
   begin  start 
   
10. have a beginning, of a temporal event
    "WW II began in 1939 when Hitler marched into Poland"; "The company's Asia tour begins next month"
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