commence

1. (intransitive) To begin, start.Examples: "Here the anthem doth commence:"; "His heaven commences ere the world be past!"; "He commenced dressing at top by donning his beaver hat, a very tall one, by the by, and then—still minus his trowsers—he hunted up his boots."intransitive

2. (transitive) To begin, start.Examples: "The speeches commenced three days of workshops, seminars, and cultural activities."transitive

3. (transitive) To begin to be, or to act as.Examples: "[…] he furnish’d me with a Gun, Cartouch-box, and Powder-horn, &c. and thus accouter’d I commenc’d Soldier."; "When we are wearied of the trouble of prosecuting crimes at the bar, we commence judges ourselves […]"transitive

4. (UK, intransitive, dated) To take a degree at a university.Examples: "[…] I question whether the Formality of Commencing was used in that Age: inclining rather to the negative, that such Distinction of Graduates was then unknown […]"; "[…] was admitted a minor fellow of his college 4 Oct. 1591, a major fellow 11 March 1591-2, and commenced M.A. in 1592."UKdatedintransitive