start
verb
uk/stɑːt/ us [ I or T ] HR, WORKPLACE
to begin to work in a job:
Can you start on Monday?
I recently started a new job and I'm enjoying it very much so far.
Entry-level employees start at low salaries.
start work
WORKPLACE
to begin to be employed for the first time:
He started work at 16 in a local baker's.
to begin your day at work:
I start work at 8.30 in the morning.
[ I or T ]
to begin an activity or a set of activities:
He started the talk with a review of the past year's achievements.
start by doing sth She started by thanking us all for attending.
[ I or T ] (also start up)
if a business or other organization starts, or if someone starts one, it is created and starts to operate:
start a business/company She started her own software company last year.
The economic model of small, farmer-owned ethanol plants got the industry started.
See also
start-up
[ I ]
to begin at one level and then move to another:
prices start at/from sth Ticket prices start at €20 and go up to €100.
[ I or T ] (also start off); (also start out)
to begin in a particular way and then change later:
He started his working life as an engineer, but later became a teacher.
start as sth The company started as a snow removal business with one truck, and grew from there.
start with sth He started with nothing and was a millionaire by the time he was 35.
[ I or T ]
if a machine or vehicle starts, or you start it, it begins to work or operate:
I started the computer and checked my mail.
Phrasal verbs
start (sth) off
start sb off
start out
start over
start (sth) up
start
noun
uk/stɑːt/ us [ C, usually singular ]
the beginning of something:
get off to a bad/good/slow start The FTSE 100 got off to another good start and climbed steadily through the morning
The shares have fallen from 418p at the start of the year to 121p today.
Accessibility is something you must think about right from the start when you're choosing your venue.
Johnson led the project from start to finish.
[ S ]
the act of beginning to do something:
make a start on sth/doing sth European funding has been obtained to enable us to make a start on the project.
[ C, usually plural ]
a business or job that has just begun, or a person who has just started a new job:
Construction spending, driven by starts of new factories and highways, rose a larger-than-expected 0.9%.
They have been providing reliable data on small business starts and closures since 2003.
All new starts are expected to sign the workplace agreement.
[ C, usually singular ]
an opportunity to begin something and start to be successful at it:
She got her start with the company as an accountant, auditing their books.
[ S ]
→ head start
a fresh start
a situation in which you start something again in a completely new and different way after you have been unsuccessful:
The program will allow economically strapped taxpayers to make a fresh start.
See also
head start
housing starts