fromEnglish Grammar Today
We can use the verbsbeginandstartto mean the same thing butbeginis more formal thanstart. Beginis an irregular verb. Its past simple form isbeganand its-edform isbegun:
When did youbeginlearning English?
The meeting didn’tstartuntil 9 pm.
We usestart, but notbegin, to talk about machines:
Press this buttonto startthe printer.
Not: …to begin the printer.
The lawnmower won’tstart.(this means that it doesn’t work)
Not:The lawnmower won’t begin.
Start, but notbegin, is used to talk about creating a new business:
Shestarteda new restaurant and it’s been going really well.
Not:She began a new restaurant…