Refers to the point in time or place where something begins, or the origin of something. Often used in phrases like 始まりの場所 (place of origin) or 物語の始まり (the beginning of a story).
This was the beginning of everything.
始まりの合図で、選手たちは一斉に走り出した。
At the starting signal, the athletes all started running at once.
This was the beginning of their friendship.
Cherry blossoms announce the start of spring.
We reached the beginning of a new era.
That incident became the start of the war.
始まり is the native Japanese noun for 'beginning' used in everyday and literary contexts, while スタート is a borrowed word often used for events, races, or projects.
始まり is a plain, general word for a beginning, whereas 黎明 in its figurative sense carries a grander, literary tone for the start of an age.
始まり is the plain, everyday word for the start of something, whereas 走り in this sense appears mainly in set compounds like 走り書き to mean the initial, rough stage.
始まり is the plain, everyday word for a beginning of anything, whereas 幕開け keeps a theatrical, dramatic flavor even in figurative use.
始まり is a general word for 'beginning' usable in any context, while 端緒 is formal and often implies the initial clue or trigger that leads to something.
始まり means 'the beginning', the direct opposite of 仕舞い 'the end'.
始まり means the beginning of something, the direct opposite of 果て, which marks its farthest end.
始まり means the beginning of something, the direct opposite of エンド, the ending.
始まり means 'beginning', the direct opposite of 終末's 'end'.
始まり means the beginning of something, the direct opposite of おしまい, which means its end.
始まり is the everyday word for “beginning,” contrasting with 了’s meaning of “the end.”