commencée

Commencée is the feminine past participle of the French verb commencer, meaning to begin or to start. In addition to its use in compound tenses with the auxiliary avoir, it can function as an adjective agreeing with a feminine noun to indicate that something has already begun.

Etymology and form: The verb commencer comes from Old French comencier, ultimately from Latin incipere. The feminine participle commencée follows standard French patterns for -er verbs, where the past participle agrees in gender and number with the noun it modifies or with a preceding direct object in compound tenses.

Usage and examples: As a past participle in the passé composé with avoir, commencée may reflect preceding direct object agreement. For example, Les idées que j'ai commencées uses commencées because idées (feminine plural) precedes the participle in the relative clause. If the direct object does not precede the participle, agreement is not shown: Elle a commencé les travaux. As an adjective, commencée agrees with the feminine noun: une histoire commencée (a story that has begun), la réunion commencée ce matin (the meeting that began this morning).

Spelling and variations: The masculine singular form is commencé; the feminine singular is commencée; the masculine plural is commencés; the feminine plural is commencées. The form commencée is not a standalone noun; it is the gendered past participle used in verbs and as an adjective.