Definition of BEGINNING

beginning

Plural: beginnings

Noun

  • the event consisting of the start of something
    • "the beginning of the war"
  • the time at which something is supposed to begin
  • the first part or section of something
    • "`It was a dark and stormy night' is a hackneyed beginning for a story"
  • the place where something begins, where it springs into being
    • "the Italian beginning of the Renaissance"
  • the act of starting something
    • "he was responsible for the beginning of negotiations"
  • The act of doing that which begins anything; commencement of an action, state, or space of time; entrance into being or upon a course; the first act, effort, or state of a succession of acts or states.
  • That which is begun; a rudiment or element.
  • That which begins or originates something; the source or first cause.
  • The initial portion of some extended thing.

Verb

  • take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
  • have a beginning, in a temporal, spatial, or evaluative sense
  • set in motion, cause to start
  • begin to speak or say; he began
  • be the first item or point, constitute the beginning or start, come first in a series
  • have a beginning, of a temporal event
  • have a beginning characterized in some specified way
  • begin an event that is implied and limited by the nature or inherent function of the direct object
  • achieve or accomplish in the least degree, usually used in the negative
  • begin to speak, understand, read, and write a language
  • present participle and gerund of begin

Adjective Satellite

  • serving to begin
    • "the beginning canto of the poem"

Adj

  • Of or relating to the first portion of some extended thing.

Examples

  • He is beginning to read a new book.
  • in the beginning paragraph of the chapter
  • in the beginning section of the course
  • That house is at the beginning of the street.
  • The author describes the main character’s youth at the beginning of the story.
  • What was the beginning of the dispute?

Origin / Etymology

From Middle English biginning, beginninge, beginnunge, equivalent to begin + -ing.

Scrabble Score: 13

beginning: valid Scrabble (US) TWL Word
beginning: valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
beginning: valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 19

beginning: valid Words With Friends Word