Commençaient (en. Were beginning)

/kɔ.mɑ̃.sɛ/

Meaning & Definition

EnglishFrench

verb

To initiate something, to embark on a process.

They started their classes every morning at 8 o'clock.

Ils commençaient leurs cours chaque matin à 8 heures.

To be the origin of an action or event.

The children often started playing before dinner.

Les enfants commençaient souvent à jouer avant le dîner.

To initiate a project or activity.

We were starting a new gardening project.

Nous commençions un nouveau projet de jardinage.

From Old French 'comencier', derived from Latin 'cominitiare'.

start off beautifully

To start in a spectacular or pleasant manner.

commencer en beauté

start from scratch

To start with no resources or preparation.

commencer à zéro

start with a bang

To start with a lot of energy or speed.

commencer sur les chapeaux de roues

start

To enter an activity or process.

commencer

beginning

Initial point of a series of events.

début

initiation

The action of starting something.

initiation

To start quickly or without precautions.

We started right away without asking questions.

On a commencé direct sans se poser de questions.

To begin doing something in an improvised manner.

They started tinkering without a plan.

Ils ont commencé à bricoler sans plan.