word-vault

{ "term": "start", "partOfSpeech": "verb", "ox3000": true, "cefr": "a1", "verbForms": { "presentSimple": { "iYouWeThey": "start", "heSheIt": "starts" }, "pastSimple": "started", "pastParticiple": "started", "ingForm": "starting" }, "definitions": [ { "senseNumber": 1, "definition": "to begin doing or using something", "sensetop": "start (something)start to do somethingstart doing somethingstart on somethingstart by doing something", "labels": "(British English)(especially North American English)", "cefr": "a1", "ox3000": true, "examples": [ { "text": "I **start work** at nine.", "contextForm": "start (something)" }, { "text": "He's just started a new job." }, { "text": "The kids **start school** next week." }, { "text": "I only started *(= began to read)* this book yesterday." }, { "text": "We need to start *(= begin using)* a new jar of coffee." }, { "text": "It's a long story. Where shall I start?" }, { "text": "Can you start *(= a new job)* on Monday?" }, { "text": "It started to rain.", "contextForm": "start to do something" }, { "text": "I was starting to feel tired." }, { "text": "Mistakes were starting to creep in." }, { "text": "She started laughing.", "contextForm": "start doing something" }, { "text": "Suddenly **things started** happening." }, { "text": "It's time you started on your homework.", "contextForm": "start on something" }, { "text": "Let's start by reviewing what we did last week.", "contextForm": "start by doing something" }, { "text": "If you want to find out more, this website is **a good place to start**." }, { "text": "By early evening he was ready to start work." }, { "text": "She started work in the mill when she was just 14 years old." }, { "text": "When we started this project, we didn't know what to expect." }, { "text": "At that point I just started to hate the man." }, { "text": "The garden is starting to look very bare." }, { "text": "I'm starting to think I should move somewhere else." }, { "text": "She started to wonder whether she was imagining it all." }, { "text": "Her heart suddenly started to race." }, { "text": "He started to get angry." }, { "text": "He started getting angry." }, { "text": "The girl next to me started to talk to me." }, { "text": "The girl next to me started talking to me." }, { "text": "People have started saying that they don't want to use social media any more." }, { "text": "Things were very different when I started working here 17 years ago." }, { "text": "I need to start getting ready." }, { "text": "It's time to start thinking about next year." }, { "text": "Maybe you should start looking for a new job." }, { "text": "When did you start playing the piano?" }, { "text": "You'd better start packing if you're to leave early tomorrow morning." }, { "text": "We'll just have to start all over again." }, { "text": "I've finished decorating the bathroom, so now I can start on the bedroom." }, { "text": "He finished all his own food and started on mine." }, { "text": "He has just started at school." }, { "text": "I don't know where to start with all this work." }, { "text": "Start from the beginning and tell me exactly what happened." }, { "text": "I'll have to start again from scratch." }, { "text": "We start by examining the evidence." }, { "text": "Start by preparing the planting area." }, { "text": "If you want to learn about frogs, this book is an excellent place to start." } ], "collocations": { "adverb": ["suddenly", "immediately", "just"], "verb + start": ["decide to", "expect to", "hope to"], "preposition": ["as", "by", "from"], "phrases": [ "get (somebody/something) started", "a good, great, etc. place to start", "let’s start" ] } }, { "senseNumber": 2, "definition": "to begin happening; to make something begin happening", "sensetop": "start somethingstart somebody/something doing something", "cefr": "a1", "ox3000": true, "examples": [ { "text": "Work is due to start this weekend." }, { "text": "What time does the show start?" }, { "text": "Have you any idea where the rumour started?" }, { "text": "Who **started the fire**?", "contextForm": "start something" }, { "text": "I'm ready to **start the process** of writing." }, { "text": "Do you **start the day** with a good breakfast?" }, { "text": "You're always trying to start an argument." }, { "text": "The news started me thinking.", "contextForm": "start somebody/something doing something" }, { "text": "A new term was about to start." }, { "text": "When does the class start?" }, { "text": "The new season starts on Monday." }, { "text": "Her career in the civil service started in 1998." }, { "text": "The fire is thought to have started in the kitchen." }, { "text": "After the war started, many people tried to leave." }, { "text": "It's a great opportunity to start a new career." }, { "text": "These producers start their planting season a week or two earlier than normal." }, { "text": "They started a war that wasn't justified." }, { "text": "Before you start the game, you choose a character to play as." }, { "text": "Who started the fight?" }, { "text": "It's his fault. He started it." }, { "text": "A campaign was started for his release." }, { "text": "Our goal is to start a conversation with our customers." }, { "text": "Birmingham Royal Ballet start the new season with an intriguing triple bill next week." }, { "text": "We want to start people talking about issues that matter to them in their community." }, { "text": "It was Liz that started me listening to classical music." } ], "collocations": { "adverb": ["suddenly", "immediately", "just"], "verb + start": ["decide to", "expect to", "hope to"], "preposition": ["as", "by", "from"], "phrases": [ "get (somebody/something) started", "a good, great, etc. place to start", "let’s start" ] } }, { "senseNumber": 3, "definition": "when you start a machine or a vehicle or it starts, it begins to operate", "sensetop": "start (something)", "cefr": "a1", "ox3000": true, "examples": [ { "text": "Start the engines!" }, { "text": "He started the recording." }, { "text": "I can't get the car started." }, { "text": "The car won't start." }, { "text": "He walked over to his truck, got in and started the engine." }, { "text": "Pushing the ignition button starts the engine." }, { "text": "Dan started the lawn mower again." }, { "text": "Start the tape." }, { "text": "I couldn't get the car to start." }, { "text": "Her voice was drowned out when the car started." }, { "text": "There was a delay because the motor wouldn't start." }, { "text": "The blender won't start unless the lid is closed properly." } ] }, { "senseNumber": 4, "definition": "to begin to exist; to make something begin to exist", "sensetop": "start upstart somethingstart something up", "cefr": "a1", "ox3000": true, "examples": [ { "text": "The company started in 1894 in Pennsylvania." }, { "text": "There are a lot of small businesses starting up in that area.", "contextForm": "start up" }, { "text": "She **started a business** while she was still at school.", "contextForm": "start something" }, { "text": "I decided to start a fashion blog." }, { "text": "They want to **start a family** *(= to have children)*." }, { "text": "He decided to start up his own film festival.", "contextForm": "start something up" }, { "text": "They decided to start a catering business." }, { "text": "She started the company in the 1990s." }, { "text": "She started a yoga class at work." }, { "text": "Maria started a Spanish conversation class in the village hall." }, { "text": "I made several attempts to start my own clothing company." }, { "text": "If you're passionate about a hobby, why not start your own blog?" }, { "text": "When we started the band we never expected this." }, { "text": "This was a club started by music fans, for music fans." }, { "text": "They are offering incentives for new businesses to start up in the area." }, { "text": "There are a lot of costs when you're just starting up." }, { "text": "Some people have great ideas but start up without having a clear idea of how viable their businesses are." }, { "text": "He started up his own chain of hotels." }, { "text": "We started up this website as a way for people to make contact with fellow enthusiasts." }, { "text": "What made you decide to start the business up?" } ] }, { "senseNumber": 5, "definition": "to begin from a particular place, amount or situation; to begin in a particular way", "sensetop": "+ adv./prep.+ adj.", "cefr": "a2", "ox3000": true, "examples": [ { "text": "The trail starts just outside the town.", "contextForm": "+ adv./prep." }, { "text": "Hotel **prices start at** €80 for a double room." }, { "text": "A sentence always **starts with** a capital letter." }, { "text": "The evening started badly when the speaker failed to turn up." }, { "text": "The best professional musicians **start young**.", "contextForm": "+ adj." }, { "text": "The 109-mile bike race starts and finishes at the end of Market Street." }, { "text": "The river starts in northwest Arkansas." }, { "text": "Let's start with this first piece of music." }, { "text": "The walk starts from the carpark on Nimmings Lane." }, { "text": "He could not remember exactly where the taxi ride started." }, { "text": "Your tour starts at the Cathedral." }, { "text": "Players start in the centre of the board and move outwards." }, { "text": "The prints are not expensive, starting at $35." }, { "text": "We start from the premise that every child matters." }, { "text": "We are starting from a difficult position because we have very little information." }, { "text": "I started with the idea that I wanted to write about family." }, { "text": "It often helps to start with a simple question." }, { "text": "The story starts in the mid 1960s in a small English town." }, { "text": "The show starts with a bang and maintains the excitement throughout." }, { "text": "The film starts well, but halfway through the story starts to drag." }, { "text": "The team started strongly but faded in the second half." }, { "text": "It's better to start slowly and learn as you go." }, { "text": "She started relatively late as an artist." }, { "text": "James started small with $5,000 in contracts." }, { "text": "I start simple, with just a geometric shape." }, { "text": "He started full of confidence, but something went wrong." } ] }, { "senseNumber": 6, "definition": "to begin, or to begin something such as a career, in a particular way that changed later", "sensetop": "start as somethingstart out/offstart out/off as somethingstart something (as something)start something doing something", "cefr": "b1", "ox3000": true, "examples": [ { "text": "She started as a secretary but ended up running the department.", "contextForm": "start as something" }, { "text": "It started as a hobby and grew from there." }, { "text": "The company started out with 30 employees.", "contextForm": "start out/off" }, { "text": "I started off as a dishwasher making 25 cents an hour.", "contextForm": "start out/off as something" }, { "text": "He **started life** as a teacher before turning to journalism.", "contextForm": "start something (as something)" }, { "text": "She **started her career** working for the BBC.", "contextForm": "start something doing something" }, { "text": "I started as a trainee and ended up a supervisor." }, { "text": "It started as a joke, but we soon realized people were taking it seriously." }, { "text": "The World Wide Web started as a way for scientists and academics to share information." }, { "text": "The film started as an experiment to see if I could do something new." }, { "text": "I started out washing cars at the golf club." }, { "text": "It's probably best to start out renting equipment." }, { "text": "We started off with just a few product lines." }, { "text": "He started work as a butcher's boy and now has his own shop." }, { "text": "I started my working life as a studio photographer." }, { "text": "The magazine started life as a comic book in 1952." }, { "text": "The building started life as a prison but was converted to a luxury hotel." } ] }, { "senseNumber": 7, "definition": "to begin a journey; to leave", "sensetop": "start (out)", "examples": [ { "text": "What time are we starting tomorrow?" }, { "text": "She had started out late for the meeting." }, { "text": "They had started out from Saigon the previous day." }, { "text": "I should get there by the afternoon if I start early." }, { "text": "Make sure you've got everything before we start." }, { "text": "They started out at five o'clock in the morning." }, { "text": "What time do we start?" } ], "synonyms": "set off, set out" }, { "senseNumber": 8, "definition": "to begin to move in a particular direction", "sensetop": "+ adv./prep.", "examples": [ { "text": "I started after her *(= began to follow her)* to tell her the news." }, { "text": "He started for the door, but I blocked his way." } ] }, { "senseNumber": 9, "definition": "to move suddenly and quickly because you are surprised or afraid", "cefr": "c2", "examples": [ { "text": "The sudden noise made her start." } ], "synonyms": "jump", "topics": ["Feelings"] }, { "senseNumber": null, "definition": "used to tell somebody not to complain or be critical", "labels": "(informal)", "examples": [ { "text": "Don't start! I told you I'd be late." }, { "text": "Don't you start! It's hard enough managing the kids, without you complaining too." } ] }, { "senseNumber": null, "definition": "to make something start happening; to make sure that something continues to happen", "examples": [] }, { "senseNumber": null, "definition": "to start a relationship well/badly", "labels": "(informal)", "examples": [ { "text": "I seem to have got off on the wrong foot with the new boss." } ] }, { "senseNumber": null, "definition": "to begin doing something", "examples": [ { "text": "It's nearly ten o'clock. Let's get started." }, { "text": "It's already late, so I think we should get started." } ] }, { "senseNumber": null, "definition": "to start a relationship well/badly", "labels": "(informal)", "examples": [ { "text": "I seem to have started off on the wrong foot with the new boss." } ] }, { "senseNumber": null, "definition": "to cause trouble", "labels": "(informal)", "examples": [] }, { "senseNumber": 1, "definition": "used when you are giving the first and most important reason for something", "cefr": "b2", "examples": [ { "text": "To start with, it’s much too expensive…" } ], "topics": ["Opinion and argument"] }, { "senseNumber": 2, "definition": "at the beginning", "examples": [ { "text": "The club had only six members to start with." }, { "text": "I'll have melon to start with." }, { "text": "She wasn't keen on the idea to start with." } ] }, { "senseNumber": null, "definition": "used to blame somebody for beginning a fight or an argument", "labels": "(informal)", "examples": [ { "text": "‘Stop fighting, you two!’ ‘He started it!’" } ], "topics": ["Opinion and argument"] } ], "pronunciations": { "uk": [ { "pronunciation": "/stɑːt/", "audio": "st/start/start__gb_1.mp3" }, { "pronunciation": "/stɑːts/", "audio": "st/start/starts__gb_1.mp3" }, { "pronunciation": "/ˈstɑːtɪd/", "audio": "st/start/started__gb_1.mp3" }, { "pronunciation": "/ˈstɑːtɪŋ/", "audio": "st/start/starting__gb_1.mp3" } ], "us": [ { "pronunciation": "/stɑːrt/", "audio": "st/start/start__us_1.mp3" }, { "pronunciation": "/stɑːrts/", "audio": "st/start/starts__us_1.mp3" }, { "pronunciation": "/ˈstɑːrtɪd/", "audio": "st/start/started__us_1.mp3" }, { "pronunciation": "/ˈstɑːrtɪŋ/", "audio": "st/start/starting__us_1.mp3" } ] }, "wordOrigin": "Old English styrtan ‘to caper, leap’, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch storten ‘push’ and German stürzen ‘fall headlong, fling’. From the sense ‘sudden movement’ arose the sense ‘initiation of movement, setting out on a journey’ and hence ‘beginning of a process, etc.’." }