This is the 9429th most frequent Portuguese word.
começavam
"Começavam" means "they/you (plural) were starting" or "they/you (plural) used to start."
Here, "começavam" is used to express the idea of starting an action or process in the past.
Eles começavam a entender o problema.
They began to understand the problem.
"Começavam" denotes habitual past action, indicating regular start times.
Os jogos começavam sempre às oito da noite.
The games always started at eight in the evening.
In this instance, "começavam" indicates a progressive action in the past, describing the onset of blooming.