be‧gin S1 W1 past tense began past participle begun present participle beginning
to start doing something:
start doing something[intransitive and transitive]
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.
if something begins, or you begin something, it starts to happen or exist from a particular time:
start happening[intransitive and transitive]
It was the coldest winter since records began.
The meeting begins at 10.30 am.
if you begin with something or begin by doing something, this is the first thing you do
Shall we begin with a prayer?
begin by doing something
I'll begin by thanking you all for being here tonight.
if a book, film, or word begins with something, it starts with a particular event or letter
'Psychosis' begins with a P.
to start speaking:
speech[intransitive and transitive]
'Ladies and gentlemen,' he began. ' I am delighted to be here.'
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.
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.
during the first part of a process or activity:
The kids helped me to begin with, but they soon got bored.
used to emphasize how difficult something is to understand etc:
I can't begin to imagine how awful it was.
begin (something) as somethingphrasal verb
Roger began his career as an office boy.