The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 8 letter word COMMENCE
C
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M
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More clues leading to the result COMMENCE
- Start to remark when tons missed church
- People with key arrive outside to open
- Workers – a hundred – come out to set the ball rolling
- Begin short explanatory note on Ecuador in recession
- Start trading, but with number not right
- Amount divided by people about to start
- Start business trading right for name
- 17 Start company with some soldiers and an engineer
- Comrade and fellows at church begin
- To start with, make a statement briefly on the present times
Buddy explains!

The straight part
We know that "Start" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case start = commence.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
What does COMMENCE mean?
COMMENCE verb- To begin, start.
- To begin to be, or to act as.
- To take a degree at a university.