Dictionary.net

the time at which something begins; "They got an early start"

the first part or section of something; "`It was a dark and stormy night' is a hackneyed beginning for a story"

the event consisting of the start of something; "the beginning of the war"

the first part or section of something; "`It was a dark and stormy night' is a hackneyed beginning for a story"

the event consisting of the start of something; "the beginning of the war"

The act of doing that which begins anything; commencement of an action, state, or space of time; entrance into being or upon a course; the first act, effort, or state of a succession of acts or states.

That which begins or originates something; the first cause; origin; source.

That which is begun; a rudiment or element.

The act of doing that which begins anything; commencement of an action, state, or space of time; entrance into being or upon a course; the first act, effort, or state of a succession of acts or states.

That which begins or originates something; the first cause; origin; source.

That which is begun; a rudiment or element.

The first cause; the first stage of anything; the source; the starting point.

The starting-point; origin; first part; source.

The first cause or origin; the first state or commencement; the rudiments.

First cause; origin; first state; the rudiments.

n. The first cause; origin; source;—that which is first; commencement;—the rudiments, first ground, or materials.

The first original, or cause; the entrance into act or being; the state in which any thing first is; the rudiments, or first grounds; the first part of any thing.