start up

start up idiom
  1. Begin to operate, especially a machine or engine, as in Start up the motor so we can get going. [First half of 1900s]
  2. Move suddenly or begin an activity, as in When the alarm rang I started up. [Early 1200s]
  3. Organize a new enterprise, as in Starting up a business requires considerable capital. [Second half of 1900s]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

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