This is the 4516th most frequent Portuguese word.
começava
"Começava" means "was starting" or "used to start" in English.
Here, 'começava' is in the imperfect tense, indicating an action that was ongoing or just beginning in the past.
Começava a chover quando saí de casa.
It was starting to rain when I left home.
In this sentence, 'começava' is used to describe a habitual past action, reflecting something done repeatedly over a period of time.
Ela começava um novo projeto toda vez que terminava outro.
She would start a new project every time she finished another.
'Começava' illustrates an action that aligns with another event in the past, showing simultaneity.