commencer ☊ 
to begin, start like: to begin → →
to make narrow, to begin to close ☊ 
hẹp lại ☊ Work on the new bridge is due to begin in September. ☊ begin ☊
I found it tiring to begin with but I soon got used to it. ☊ to begin with ☊
We'll go slowly to begin with. ☊ to begin with ☊
'What was it you didn't like?' 'Well, to begin with, our room was far too small.' ☊ to begin with ☊
The audience was waiting for the curtain to rise (= for the play to begin). ☊ curtain ☊
It was difficult to explain the problem to beginners. ☊ explain ☊
to begin the difficult process of reforming the education system ☊ process ☊
to take your seat (= to begin your duties, especially in Parliament) ☊ seat ☊
She's moving abroad to make a fresh start (= to begin a new life). ☊ start ☊
commencer ☊ il est important que ces entretiens commencent immédiatement ☊
entreprendre ☊ la dame blanche entreprend de monter l’escalier ☊