Dictionary

commence en · VERB

Pronunciation

• (Southern-England) audio
• /kəˈmens/ (Australia, New-Zealand)
• /kəˈmɛns/ (Canada, General-American, Received-Pronunciation)

Etymology

From Middle English commencen, comencen (also as contracted comsen, cumsen), from Anglo-Norman comencer, from Vulgar Latin *cominitiāre, formed from Latin com- + initiō (whence English initiate).

Meanings

1. (intransitive) To begin, start.
   • He commenced dressing at top by donning his beaver hat, a very tall one, by the by, and then—still minus his trowsers—he hunted up his boots. 1851 November 14, Herman Melville, chapter 4, in Moby-Dick; or, The Whale, 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers; London: Richard Bentley, →OCLC:
   • Here the anthem doth commence: 1601, William Shakespeare, The Phoenix and the Turtle:
   • His heaven commences ere the world be past! 1770, Oliver Goldsmith, “The Deserted Village”, in The Miscellaneous Works of Oliver Goldsmith, London: W. Griffin, published 1775, page 164:
   • The speeches commenced three days of workshops, seminars, and cultural activities. 1976 December 11, Thom Willenbecher, quoting Jean O'Leary, “Women's Caucus Quits Gay Academic Union”, in Gay Community News, volume 4, number 24, page 1:
   • Then he commenced to talk, really talk. and inside of two flaps of a herring's fin he had me mesmerized, like Eben Holt's boy at the town hall show. He talked about the ills of humanity, and the glories of health and Nature and service and land knows what all. 1913, Joseph C[rosby] Lincoln, chapter IV, in Mr. Pratt’s Patients, New York, N.Y.; London: D[aniel] Appleton and Company, →OCLC:
2. (Appalachia, intransitive, with to) To begin or start.
   • At dawn we'll commence to drive.
3. (transitive) To begin to be, or to act as.
   • When we are wearied of the trouble of prosecuting crimes at the bar, we commence judges ourselves […] 1825, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Aids to Reflection in the Formation of a Manly Character, London: Taylor & Hessey, Prudential Aphorisms, Aphorism 15, page 48:
   • […] he furnish’d me with a Gun, Cartouch-box, and Powder-horn, &c. and thus accouter’d I commenc’d Soldier. 1743, Robert Drury, The Pleasant, and Surprizing Adventures of Mr. Robert Drury, during his Fifteen Years Captivity on the Island of Madagascar, London, page 126:
4. (UK, dated, intransitive) To take a degree at a university.
   • […] was admitted a minor fellow of his college 4 Oct. 1591, a major fellow 11 March 1591-2, and commenced M.A. in 1592. 1861, George John Gray, Athenae Cantabrigienses: 1586-1609, page 272:
   • […] I question whether the Formality of Commencing was used in that Age: inclining rather to the negative, that such Distinction of Graduates was then unknown […] 1655, Thomas Fuller, “The Seventh Century”, in The Church-history of Britain; […], London: […] Iohn Williams […], →OCLC, (please specify |book=I to XI), page 75:

Forms

Antonyms

stop (antonym(s) of “to begin”; to stop) · finish (antonym(s) of “to begin”; to finish) · end (antonym(s) of “to begin”) · cease (antonym(s) of “to begin”) · complete (antonym(s) of “to begin”) · conclude (antonym(s) of “to begin”)

Deriveds

commenceable

Relateds

commencement

Synonyms

begin

Translations (51)

fi aloittaa (begin, start) · be пача́цца (begin, start) · uk поча́ти (begin, start) · ca començar (begin, start) · pl poczać (begin, start) · ru начина́ть (begin, start) · ka დაწყება (begin, start) · hy սկսել (begin, start) · no påbegynne (begin, start) · ro începe (begin, start) · tr açmak (begin, start) · hu elkezd (begin, start) · bg запо́чна (begin, start) · de beginnen (begin, start) · sl pričenjati (begin, start) · tr başlatmak (begin, start) · sv börja (begin, start) · eo komenciĝi (begin, start) · cmn 開始 /开始 (begin, start) · ht komanse (begin, start) · gl comezar (begin, start) · tl magsimula (begin, start) · bg запо́чвам (begin, start) · fa آغاز کردن (begin, start) · uk поча́тися (begin, start) · uk почина́тися (begin, start) · ja 始まる (begin, start) · be пачына́цца (begin, start) · sl pričeti (begin, start) · ja 始める (begin, start) · eo komenci (begin, start) · bg поде́мам (begin, start) · fr commencer (begin, start) · tr başlamak (begin, start) · az başlamaq (begin, start) · es incoar (begin, start) · sv begynna (begin, start) · nl aanvangen (begin, start) · no begynne (begin, start) · da begynde (begin, start) · pt começar (begin, start) · ia comenciar (begin, start) · el αρχίζω (begin, start) · uk почина́ти (begin, start) · be пачына́ць (begin, start) · ru начина́ться (begin, start) · pl poczynać (begin, start) · bg наче́вам (begin, start) · it cominciare (begin, start) · be пача́ць (begin, start) · de anfangen (begin, start)