Start | Mean of start in English Dictionary

/ˈstɑɚt/

• Verb
• to do the first part of something
1. They started clearing land for the new housing development.
2. He started the speech (out) with a joke.
3. He started studying music at the age of five.
4. She saw her divorce as an opportunity to start a new life. = She saw her divorce as an opportunity to start life anew/afresh/over.
5. As soon as you're ready to play, we'll start.
6. Let's start with some warm-up exercises.
7. He deleted what he wrote and started fresh/again/over.
8. Nothing like this had ever been done before, so we had to start from scratch. [=we had to begin from a point at which nothing had been done yet]
9. Olympic athletes start young and train hard.
10. The tire tracks at the scene of the crime were a starting point for investigators. [=investigators used the tire tracks to start their investigation]
• to begin to work on, produce, or give attention to (something)
1. I started the quilt last month.
2. Have you started your book report?
3. Did you start (reading) the book yet?
• to cause (something) to begin
1. We started the meeting at 6:30.
2. She started the meeting with a brief review of the previous meeting.
3. He starts every day with a cup of coffee.

• to begin to have a feeling, thought, etc.
1. She started to feel dizzy soon after the accident.
2. I'm starting to think the oversight was intentional.
3. She started feeling dizzy soon after the accident.
4. He started having chest pains.
• to begin working at a new job or going to school
1. I start my new job next Monday.
2. When does she start school?
3. I just got a new job. I start next week.
• to begin to happen, to exist, to be done, etc.
1. The fire started in the cellar.
2. The rain will start soon and should end sometime this evening.
3. The game started late.
4. Starting next week, all employees will be required to wear ID tags.
5. The movie just started.
6. What is the movie's starting time?
7. When does school start?
8. The game was just starting when it began to rain.
9. It started to rain.
10. The leaves are starting to change colors.
11. It started raining.
• to cause (something) to exist or happen
1. He started a scholarship fund.
2. The tradition was started many years ago.
3. “Stop fighting, you two!” “He started it.” [=he did something to cause the fight]
4. She's always starting arguments.
5. They want to start a family [=begin to have children] soon.
• to begin to function or operate
1. The car/engine won't start.
• to cause (something) to begin to function or operate
1. She started the car and drove away.
• to begin the use of (something)
1. You'll have to start a new roll of tape. This one's empty.
• to have a particular beginning
1. The English alphabet starts with A and ends with Z.
2. The first word in a sentence should start with a capital letter.
3. The parade starts at the intersection of First and Main.
4. The path/trail starts here and ends at the lake.
• to have a specified quality, identity, job, etc., at the beginning
1. What started (off) as a simple idea has become an expensive and complicated project.
2. She started (out) as a sales assistant but is now the marketing director.
• to begin to move toward a particular place or in a particular direction
1. We'll start for home soon.
2. We should start back to the camp before it gets dark.
3. He started toward the door.
4. The dog started after the squirrel.
• to participate in a game or contest at its beginning
1. Despite his injury, he'll start in center field today.
2. The manager removed the starting pitcher [=the pitcher who was playing at the beginning of the game] in the third inning.
3. He's in the starting lineup. [=a list of the players who will be playing when the game begins]
4. Who's starting for the home team?
5. He'll start today's game in center field.
6. a pitcher who has started five games so far this year
7. She started the race but wasn't able to finish.
• to put (someone or something) into a game or contest at its beginning
1. The coach is starting him at quarterback for the next game.
2. He plans to start [=enter] the horse in only a few races this year.
• to cause (someone) to begin doing something
1. Her questions started me thinking.
2. The company started him at the same salary he had been getting at his previous job.
• to cause (someone) to begin talking about a particular subject
1. “What do you think of the new boss?” “Don't get me started. I can't stand him.”
2. Don't get him started on the war: he'll never stop!
• to move suddenly and quickly because you are surprised or frightened
1. The loud noise made him start. [=jump]
2. The horse started when the shot rang out.
• to begin complaining, arguing, etc.
1. He started with me, so I hit him.
2. Don't (you) start (with me). I made a mistake—that's the end of it.
• to begin doing or working on something
1. You (had) better get started if you want to finish on time.
2. newlyweds who are just getting started [=who are just starting their lives together]
• to start doing a particular activity or action
1. He took a break from painting to eat lunch, then started in again.
2. She started in on another book.
• to criticize (someone) about something
1. My dad started in on me about not having a job.
• to start or cause (something) to start in a specified way
1. He started off by introducing himself.
2. She started off (her run) at a slow jog.
3. The performance started off badly.
4. I started off my speech with a joke.
5. We started off the meal with shrimp cocktails.
6. The team started the season off with a 10-game winning streak.
• to have a specified quality, identity, job, etc., at the start
1. She started off as a sales assistant but is now the marketing director.
• to begin an important period in your life or career
1. The house is perfect for a couple just starting off.
• to cause (someone) to begin doing a particular activity or action
1. He started his daughter off on the piano.
2. The game-show host started her off with some easy questions.
• to begin doing (something)
1. Did you start on your homework yet?
• to cause (someone) to start doing or using (something)
1. The doctor started him on [=made him start taking] antibiotics.
2. When should we start the baby on solid food? [=start feeding the baby solid food]
• to begin in a specified way
1. He started out by introducing himself.
2. She started out at a slow jog.
3. The day started out hot and humid.
4. The story started out good, but I didn't like the ending.
5. She started out wanting to be a doctor but became a midwife instead.
6. I started out with $100 but I have only $10 left.
7. Let's start out with some warm-up exercises.
• to begin to travel
1. They started out in the early morning.
• to have a particular place as a beginning point
1. The parade starts out at the intersection of First and Main.
• to begin doing something again
1. I'm sorry, but you'll have to start over. = I'm sorry, but you'll have to start (all) over again.
2. She saw her divorce as an opportunity to start (her life) over.
• to begin to happen again
1. In the spring, the eggs hatch, and the cycle starts over. = The cycle starts (all) over again.
• to do something that causes trouble
1. She is always trying to start something.
2. Don't start anything.
• to begin to happen or exist
1. New businesses are starting up all over the state.
2. The rain started up again.
• to begin to function or to make (something) begin to function
1. The car/engine won't start up.
2. He started the lawn mower up.
• at the beginning
1. She has lost a lot of weight, and she wasn't very heavy to start with.
2. He didn't like his job to start with [=at first, initially], but he got used to it eventually.
• Noun
• the time at which something begins
1. At the season's start, the team didn't play well.
2. It was clear from the (very) start that she would eventually succeed.
3. The game was close from start to finish.
4. The start of the race was delayed.
• the first part of an activity, development, event, etc.
1. The restaurant is off to a promising/shaky start.
2. His parents gave him a good start in life.
3. Their marriage got off to a good/bad start. [=was good/bad at the beginning]
4. We missed the start of the game.
5. Their discovery could be the start of something big.
• the first opportunity to begin a career
1. the company where he got his start [=where he started his career]
2. She got her start in an off-Broadway play.
3. She gave him his start in the business.
• the act of starting something
1. Housing starts [=the number of new houses that people started to build] declined in September.
2. Despite his late start, he managed to take the lead in the race.
3. She got an early start working in the garden the next morning.
4. We didn't get as much done as we'd hoped, but it's a start.
5. Her divorce gave her an opportunity to make a fresh/new start. [=to start a new life]
6. He made a start on dinner. [=he started dinner]
• a brief, sudden action or movement
1. She gave a start [=started, jumped] when he tapped her on the shoulder.
2. He woke with a start.
• the place where a race begins
1. The runners lined up at the start.
• a game in which someone (such as a baseball pitcher) is playing at the beginning
1. He's undefeated in six starts this year. [=he has started six games and has won them all]
2. He pitched poorly in his last start.
• a race in which a person, horse, etc., participates as a competitor
1. The horse has had 10 starts this season.