begin

Pronunciation

• IPA: /bɪˈɡɪn/^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English beginnen,^[2] inherited from Old English beginnan (“to attempt, undertake”),^[3][4] a rare word beside the usual onginnan,^[3] from be- and Proto-West Germanic *ginnan, which is of obscure origin and found only in compounds.^[3][4][5] Etymonline suggests that it may have meant “to open, open up”, comparing Old High German in-ginnan “to cut open; to begin”.^[3] It is cognate with Old Frisian biginna, Old Saxon and Old High German biginnan, Dutch and German beginnen, and Gothic duginnan.^[3][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

To take the first step, to start: about 1000, in Ælfric's version of Genesis.^[4][6]

Semantic evolution

“To originate, be the originator of” is from the late 12th century, and “to take the first step in, start to deal with”, with an object, from about 1200.^[3] The intransitive sense “to come into existence” is from the mid-13th century.^[3] To begin with and to begin at are from about 1325.^[6] With a negative, “to come anywhere near”, as in does not begin to cover the cost, is from 1833,^[6] and the American sense “to compare in any degree with” from 1862.^[6] An unrelated Middle English verb begin, “to entrap”, is recorded about 1250.^[6] In Oxfordshire dialect begin could mean “to scold”.^[7]

Timeline

• c. 1000 – to begin, start.^[4][6]
• late 12th century – to originate.^[3]
• c. 1200 – to start on something.^[3]
• mid-13th century – to come into existence.^[3]
• c. 1325 – to begin with.^[6]
• 1833 – with a negative, to come near.^[6]

Modern meaning

Verb

1. To take the first step in doing something; to start.
2. To come into being; to originate.
3. To do in the least degree: the words can't begin to describe it.
4. To be the first part of: the letter A begins the alphabet.

Word family

• beginning
• beginner

Related words

• commence
• start

Usage notes

The past tense is began and the past participle begun.^[5][1]

References

1. ^ a b Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
2. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ a b c d e Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
5. ^ a b Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
6. ^ a b c d e f g h Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
7. ^ Wright, Joseph, ed. (1898–1905), The English Dialect Dictionary, 6 vols., Oxford: Henry Frowde; via EDD Online 4.0, University of Innsbruck (CC BY 4.0)