English is the only language that is widely spoken around the world by almost 2 billion people, either natively or as a second language. This is a relatively easy language to learn as compared to other languages. 

English is also declared as the international language and official language as well in some of the states. The reason behind the massive use of the language is simple; it is spoken and understood in almost all the countries around the world. The English which is spoken in the USA and the one which is spoken in the UK, both are already different for so many years. 

The language is, however, difficult when it comes to the structure of grammar, spellings, pronunciation, and rules of tenses; they are all quite confusing, which would take a longer period to master. It can be pretty challenging after learning the very basics of the language; even the natives of Great Britain find it complex to speak fluently at a certain stage. 

–Still, the fact cannot be denied that English has brought ease to the people and has connected everyone via providing the same medium of communication.

When it comes to writing and speaking the English language, we may lack somewhere due to the lack of consistency. Not being a native may make us lose the grip over the conversation, and we can surely get confused in using the correct form of the verb. 

Due to the absence of consistency somehow, we make the very common mistakes that come from conjugation, present, past, and past participle tenses. 

One of the most common mistakes which originate from here is the use of the verb “Begin”. 

The use of begin began, and begun can become a bit confusing when it comes to conversation. They cannot be used in academic and professional writings mistakenly. Coursework Website penned, it is very important to learn the use of conjugations and the forms of verb along with the structure of the tenses. 

Let’s see how to use began and begun, which could make us sound like a native in conversation and writing. 

Where do Began and Begun words come from?

Began and begun are the two forms of the verb “Begin”. Both of them are used in the context of past tense. Both of the forms of the verb have come from the use of the verb which was “to begin”. The word is having a difference of only one letter and it is used in various ways after being embedded in the past and participle. 

What’s the difference between began and begun?

If you are puzzled that when to use begin, began or begun? Then you are at the right blog; keep reading to know the basic difference between the forms of begin. 

Began is always used with the past tense (only past indefinite. Check the examples below;

-She began to cry after seeing the food menu. 

-He began to study late at night.

-They began to laugh at his joke. 

Are you getting my point? With every indefinite past tense, began has been used, which is the second of the verb “begin”. 

Talking about begun, it is used as the third form of the verb in the present and past perfect tense. Look at the examples;

-He has begun to improve his nature.

-She had begun to walk towards the park.

-They had begun to eat the sandwiches without him. 

It is proven that both the forms of the verb “begin” are quite different from each other when used with the past indefinite, present, and past perfect tense. 

When to use Began in a Sentence? 

Talking about when to use Began in the sentence. It depends on the absence of any helping verb i.e. has/ have/ had. 

Whenever your sentence is already completed without the addition of a helping verb, make sure to use began. Keep a reminder note;

Began = simple past tense (known as past indefinite also). 

Using Began in Questions? 

Began is ultimately not able to use in use in question; however, begin or had begun are correct if you want to use them in a question. 

When we use began, it becomes the second form of the verb, where a helping verb is not required. However, asking it as a question would need the helping verb “did”, and the use of did make the other helping verb go with its simplest form. Understand it with an example;

-I began to sweat with fear.

Now turning it into an interrogative form means a question

-Did I begin to sweat with fear?

Did you realize where I made the change? Jump to another example;

-She began to eat pasta. 

Converting it into a question

-Did she begin to eat pasta?

I am hoping you have caught the correct idea of the use of tenses. It isn’t easy, but practice makes the man perfect. It requires some of the listening and speaking session and BAM; you are ready to speak with correct sentence structure. Here is another example of using began in interrogative structure with a change of verb form. 

-She began to smile politely.

Let’s convert this into a question together

-Did she begin to smile politely?

When to use Begun in a Sentence?

If you are confused and thinking, how do you use the word begun in a sentence? Then here is the help. The use of begun lies on the helping verbs, which show the structure of the sentence. The indication is shown by the use of has/ have or had in the sentence.  

Whenever your sentence is already completed with the addition of a helping verb, you make sure to use begun over here. Keep a reminder note;

Begun = present perfect (has/ have) and past perfect (had) 

Now, if you think that “Is have begun correct?” then yes, it is correct. 

Using Begun in Questions?

Begun is easily used in the question, along with its helping verb. There is no need to change the form of the verb as there is the availability of helping verb i.e., has/ have and had. 

In such a case, there is no need to adjust the forms of the verb. The affirmative structure of the sentence, which is having a helping verb easily converts the sentence into a question without changing the form of “begin”. Understand it with the example. 

-He has officially begun to paint.

Now let’s make it interrogative. 

-Has he officially begun to paint?

See, it was that simple because of the presence of a helping verb. Did you notice the minor change?

See another example;

-She has begun to watch the movie.

Let’s transform it into an interrogative tense. 

-Has she begun to watch the movie?

You must be getting the changes which I made. I just changed the place of helping verb and BOOM; the sentence completely took a change from being simple to a question. 

Here is another example. 

-They have begun to eat their pizza.

Changing it to use begun in a question.

-Have they begun to eat their pizza?

So, now let me know, 

Holidays have begun or began?

 “Began” or “Begun”:

After reading this article, you may not find it confusing that is it I have began or I have begun? I would highly recommend you to first understand the structure of every tense and then make the use of these forms of verbs. 

The first step is to understand why we are using the word to begin in our sentence. It simply points towards the thing which is about to make a start, or which is just accelerating from the initial stage. 

So be keen about using the word “begin”. And when you have begun to use it, then make sure, it completely sounds correct, just like a pro. Do not get mix with began and begun. 

You must have heard the forms of the verb “Run”

Speak them up;

Run, ran, and then run. 

The same order of words go with begin, began, and then begun.

Here, it is very important to have a strong command over the tenses and their structure. Once you mix any of them, POOF, confusion is all around you. Trust me, in such a condition, you can lose all your focus from the conversation or the writing. 

Further Ways to Express Final Thoughts: 

What I believe is that, if you are not sure about the use of begin, began, begun, or even if you have doubts about have begun, has begun, and had begun, then do not use them in your writings and conversation. 

You can go with the other synonyms of begin, which include; taking a start, initiating, setting to move, and many others. 

The above-mentioned examples and explanations are the strongest evidence to show that began and begun are two poles apart, and there is a difference between them. 

Begin, began, and begun are completely three different words with their particular uses. With the help of this article, I wish you are now aware of the purposes and uses of all these three words. Practice a little with the help of listening, speaking, and writing sessions, and you would be confident enough yourself to use them correctly!