commence

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commence

originate, inaugurate, begin, start: commence the show

Not to be confused with:

comments – remarks; observations, annotations, criticisms: There were harsh comments on the performance.

com·mence

(kə-mĕns′)

v. com·menced, com·menc·ing, com·menc·es

v.tr.

To begin; start. See Synonyms at begin.

v.intr.

To enter upon or have a beginning; start.

[Middle English commencen, from Old French comencier, from Vulgar Latin *cominitiāre : Latin com-, intensive pref.; see com- + Late Latin initiāre, to begin (from Latin initium, beginning; see ei- in Indo-European roots).]

com·menc′er n.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

commence

(kəˈmɛns)

to start or begin; come or cause to come into being, operation, etc

[C14: from Old French comencer, from Vulgar Latin cominitiāre (unattested), from Latin com- (intensive) + initiāre to begin, from initium a beginning]

comˈmencer n

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

com•mence

(kəˈmɛns)

v.i., v.t. -menced, -menc•ing.

to begin; start.

[1250–1300; Middle English < Anglo-French, Middle French comencer < Vulgar Latin *cominitiāre= Latin com- com- + initiāre to begin; see initiate]

com•mence′a•ble, adj.

com•menc′er, n.

syn: See begin.

commence

Past participle: commenced
Gerund: commencing

Imperative
commence
commence

Present
I commence
you commence
he/she/it commences
we commence
you commence
they commence

Preterite
I commenced
you commenced
he/she/it commenced
we commenced
you commenced
they commenced

Present Continuous
I am commencing
you are commencing
he/she/it is commencing
we are commencing
you are commencing
they are commencing

Present Perfect
I have commenced
you have commenced
he/she/it has commenced
we have commenced
you have commenced
they have commenced

Past Continuous
I was commencing
you were commencing
he/she/it was commencing
we were commencing
you were commencing
they were commencing

Past Perfect
I had commenced
you had commenced
he/she/it had commenced
we had commenced
you had commenced
they had commenced

Future
I will commence
you will commence
he/she/it will commence
we will commence
you will commence
they will commence

Future Perfect
I will have commenced
you will have commenced
he/she/it will have commenced
we will have commenced
you will have commenced
they will have commenced

Future Continuous
I will be commencing
you will be commencing
he/she/it will be commencing
we will be commencing
you will be commencing
they will be commencing

Present Perfect Continuous
I have been commencing
you have been commencing
he/she/it has been commencing
we have been commencing
you have been commencing
they have been commencing

Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been commencing
you will have been commencing
he/she/it will have been commencing
we will have been commencing
you will have been commencing
they will have been commencing

Past Perfect Continuous
I had been commencing
you had been commencing
he/she/it had been commencing
we had been commencing
you had been commencing
they had been commencing

Conditional
I would commence
you would commence
he/she/it would commence
we would commence
you would commence
they would commence

Past Conditional
I would have commenced
you would have commenced
he/she/it would have commenced
we would have commenced
you would have commenced
they would have commenced

Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

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Verb	1.	commence - take the first step or steps in carrying out an action; "We began working at dawn"; "Who will start?"; "Get working as soon as the sun rises!"; "The first tourists began to arrive in Cambodia"; "He began early in the day"; "Let's get down to work now" begin, set out, start, start out, set about, get down, get recommence - begin again; "we recommenced his reading after a short nap" strike out - set out on a course of action; "He struck out on his own" fall - begin vigorously; "The prisoners fell to work right away" jump off - set off quickly, usually with success; "The freshman jumped off to a good start in his math class" get to - arrive at the point of; "She gets to fretting if I stay away from home too long" auspicate - commence in a manner calculated to bring good luck; "They auspicated the trip with a bottle of champagne" attack - set to work upon; turn one's energies vigorously to a task; "I attacked the problem as soon as I got out of bed" break in - start in a certain activity, enterprise, or role launch, plunge - begin with vigor; "He launched into a long diatribe"; "She plunged into a dangerous adventure" come on - occur or become available; "water or electricity came on again after the earthquake" embark, enter - set out on (an enterprise or subject of study); "she embarked upon a new career" get moving, get rolling, get started, get weaving, bestir oneself, get cracking, get going - start to be active; "Get cracking, please!" begin - begin to speak, understand, read, and write a language; "She began Russian at an early age"; "We started French in fourth grade"
	2.	commence - set in motion, cause to start; "The U.S. started a war in the Middle East"; "The Iraqis began hostilities"; "begin a new chapter in your life" lead off, start, begin jumpstart, jump-start - start or re-start vigorously; "The Secretary of State intends to jumpstart the Middle East Peace Process" recommence - cause to start anew; "The enemy recommenced hostilities after a few days of quiet" usher in, inaugurate, introduce - be a precursor of; "The fall of the Berlin Wall ushered in the post-Cold War period" set off - set in motion or cause to begin; "The guide set the tour off to a good start" embark on, start up, commence, start - get off the ground; "Who started this company?"; "We embarked on an exciting enterprise"; "I start my day with a good breakfast"; "We began the new semester"; "The afternoon session begins at 4 PM"; "The blood shed started when the partisans launched a surprise attack" begin - have a beginning, of a temporal event; "WW II began in 1939 when Hitler marched into Poland"; "The company's Asia tour begins next month"
	3.	commence - get off the ground; "Who started this company?"; "We embarked on an exciting enterprise"; "I start my day with a good breakfast"; "We began the new semester"; "The afternoon session begins at 4 PM"; "The blood shed started when the partisans launched a surprise attack" embark on, start up, start commence, lead off, start, begin - set in motion, cause to start; "The U.S. started a war in the Middle East"; "The Iraqis began hostilities"; "begin a new chapter in your life" inaugurate, kick off - commence officially open - begin or set in action, of meetings, speeches, recitals, etc.; "He opened the meeting with a long speech"

commence

verb

1. embark on, start, open, begin, initiate, originate, instigate, inaugurate, enter upon They commenced a systematic search of the area.
embark on end, stop, finish, complete, conclude, halt, cease, wind up, terminate, bring to an end, desist

2. start, open, begin, go ahead The academic year commences at the beginning of October.
start end, stop, finish, cease, wind up, come to an end

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

commence

verb

1. To go about the initial step in doing (something):

approach, begin, embark, enter, get off, inaugurate, initiate, institute, launch, lead off, open, set about, set out, set to, start, take on, take up, undertake.

Informal: kick off.

Idioms: get cracking, get going, get the show on the road.

2. To come into being:

arise, begin, originate, start.

3. To begin to appear or develop:

appear, arise, dawn, emerge, originate.

Translations

يَشْرَعُ في، يَبْدأُ

zahájit

begynde

beginnen

comenzar

aloittaa

commencer débuter aborder

elkezdelkezdõdik

byrja, hefja

cominciare

aktasuniversiteto baigimo iškilmės

iesāktiesāktiessāktsākties

aanvangen

começar

начинать начинаться

začínať

börja

başlamak

开始

commence

[kəˈmens] (frm)

A. VT → comenzar
to commence doing or to do sth → comenzar a hacer algo
to commence proceedings (against sb) (Jur) → entablar demanda (a algn)

B. VI → comenzar

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

commence

[kəˈmɛns]

vt (= start) → commencer
to commence doing sth → commencer à faire qch
to commence to do sth → commencer à faire qch

vi → commencer

commence

(form)

vi → beginnen

vt → beginnen (→ obj mit +dat); legal proceedings → eröffnen; to commence doing or to do something → mit etw anfangen

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

commence

[kəˈmɛns]

1. vt → cominciare
to commence doing sth → cominciare a fare qc

2. vi → cominciare

commence

(kəˈmens) verb

to begin. the church service commenced with a hymn.

comˈmencement noun

1. beginning.

2. a ceremony at which students receive their diplomas or degrees.

References in classic literature ?

And I had little difficulty in determining the objects with which it was necessary to commence, for I was already persuaded that it must be with the simplest and easiest to know, and, considering that of all those who have hitherto sought truth in the sciences, the mathematicians alone have been able to find any demonstrations, that is, any certain and evident reasons, I did not doubt but that such must have been the rule of their investigations.

View in context

It is even conceivable that an insect might, by fixing on a point at which to commence a cell, and then moving outside, first to one point, and then to five other points, at the proper relative distances from the central point and from each other, strike the planes of intersection, and so make an isolated hexagon: but I am not aware that any such case has been observed; nor would any good be derived from a single hexagon being built, as in its construction more materials would be required than for a cylinder.

View in context

The sharpshooters of Morand's division and of the vice-King's division will open a heavy fire on seeing the attack commence on the right wing.

View in context

These are my enticements, and they are sufficient to conquer all fear of danger or death and to induce me to commence this laborious voyage with the joy a child feels when he embarks in a little boat, with his holiday mates, on an expedition of discovery up his native river.

View in context

It would, therefore, have been fatal to himself to have attempted the experiment; a warrior would have fared no better; but the danger of a boy would not be likely to commence until after his object was discovered.

View in context

Tomorrow the torture will commence; tonight thou art Tal Hajus'; come!"

View in context

We had only three boarders and half a dozen day-pupils to commence with; but by due care and diligence we hoped ere long to increase the number of both.

I suppose your Midsummer holidays commence in June, the same as other people's; therefore you cannot plead want of time; and you must and shall come--in fact, I shall die if you don't.

View in context

Post hajj operation of private scheme would commence from September 17 and continue till October 16.

Month long pre-hajj flight operation to commence from Aug 3

Philippine Airlines will commence direct twice-weekly flights between Cebu, Philippines and Seoul, Korea on 1 October using an Airbus A330-300 aircraft.

NEW SERVICES

Sakrand Sugar Mill, Bandhi Sugar Mill and Habib Sugar Mill have started cane crushing while Al-Noor Sugar Mill is schedules to commence crushing within 24 hours.