začeti

1. (of a child) to conceive
   Dugo su pokušavali da začnu dete. — They tried to conceive a child for a long time.
   Beba je začeta na letovanju u Grčkoj. — The baby was conceived on holiday in Greece.
2. formal (of an idea, plan) to conceive; to come up with
   Ideja o festivalu začeta je pre deset godina. — The idea for the festival was conceived ten years ago.
3. (začeti se) to originate; to emerge
   Naša ljubav se začela na fakultetu. — Our love began at university.
4. formal (a conversation, dispute, song) to begin; to initiate; to strike up
   Začeo je razgovor o prošlosti, ali ga je ona brzo prekinula. — He struck up a conversation about the past, but she quickly cut it short.

In the sense 'to begin' (sense 4) the word is literary; in everyday speech početi, započeti are used.