Chinese phrase
你什么时候开始做〜 nǐ shén me shí hòu kāi shǐ zuò 〜
Meaning
When did you start doing ___?
When to use it
It asks when someone started an activity or task. It is a neutral way to ask about the starting time of an activity, often followed by the activity being discussed.
Example dialogue
你什么时候开始做留学申请准备？ nǐ shén me shí hòu kāi shǐ zuò liú xué shēn qǐng zhǔn bèi
When did you start preparing your study abroad application?
我三个月前开始做准备。 wǒ sān gè yuè qián kāi shǐ zuò zhǔn bèi
I started preparing three months ago.