開始
Meaning in Englishstart, beginning, commencement
Animated kanji stroke order
Related sentences
Word context
What it means
What does 開始 mean? It denotes the moment or act of beginning something—a formal or natural onset of a process, event, or activity. In everyday and formal Japanese, it marks the point at which preparation ends and action begins, often used with verbs like する to express the act of starting.
Main meanings
- Start or commencement of something such as a project, event, or program
- The opening phase or onset of a process or sequence
- A defined starting time or date, especially in schedules or announcements
How to use it
Used in formal, written, and spoken contexts to refer to the initiation of a plan, event, or process. It often appears with compounds like 開始する to express the act of starting, and with time-related terms such as 開始時刻 or 開始日 to designate the starting point in schedules, contracts, and announcements.
Variants and close terms
- 始動 (shidō) – start-up, initiating operation
- スタート (sutāto) – start, loanword
- 始まり (hajimari) – beginning, noun
- 着手 (chakushu) – to commence, to begin work
- 終わる/終了 (shūryō) – end, antonym
Composition
- 開 = open, to open
- 始 = begin, start
- Together they form a compound meaning the act or moment of beginning something
Etymology
開 (open) + 始 (begin) form a Sino-Japanese compound read kaishi; the on'yomi readings kai and shi combine to convey the sense of initiating something.
Word class
Noun (suru-verb) (名詞, する動詞)