begin
v 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!" [syn: {get}, {start out}, {start},
{set about}, {set out}, {commence}] [ant: {end}]
2: 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" [syn: {start}] [ant: {end}]
3: get off the ground; "Who started this company?" "We embarked
on an exciting enterprise" [syn: {start}, {start up}, {embark
on}, {commence}]
4: set in motion, cause to start; "The U.S. started a war in
the Middle East"; "The Iraquis began hostilities"; "begin
a new chapter in your life" [syn: {lead off}, {start}, {commence}]
[ant: {end}]
5: begin to speak or say; "Now listen, friends," he began
6: come first in a series; "The number "one" begins the
sequence"
7: 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"