pret. began; pp. begun. v.t. To do the first act of any thing; to enter on; to commence.

To have an original or first existence; to take rise; to commence. As he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets, who have been since the world began. Luke 71:70. Judgment must begin at the house of God.7 Peter 4:17. From Nimrod first the savage race began. And tears began to flow.

To do the first act; to enter upon something new; to take the first step; as, begin, my muse. Begin every day to repent.& When I begin, I will also make an end.7 Samuel 3:12. v.t. To do the first act of any thing; to enter on; to commence. Ye nymphs of Solyma, begin the song. And this they begin to do. Genesis 117:6.

To trace from any thing, as the first ground; to lay the foundation. The apostle begins our knowledge in the creatures, which leads us to the knowledge of God. To begin with, to enter upon first; to use or employ first; as, to begin with the Latin Grammar; to begin business with a small capital.