<p>I learned that tortoises are among the most endangered families in reptiles
-Why is the answer families of and not family of?</p>
<p>Rose, it turns out, is a desert tortoise that my grandmother had started raising over twenty years ago.</p>
<p>begun to raise, started to raise, started up raising, begun raising
which one is it and what are the rules with began and begun?</p>
<p>The first one is plural because it is describing a group (all of the most endangered families). The tortoise is not THE most endangered family, it is one species among several of the most endangered families. </p>
<p>Hopefully that is somewhat helpful… I’m not sure if I made things any clearer.</p>
<p>For the begun/began thing: check this out. I copied it off a website and I think it is very clear. </p>
<p>In grammatical terms, it’s this: “began” is past tense and “begun” is the past participle.</p>
<p>What this means in use is that if you are talking about something in the simple past tense, you would always use “began.” These sentences are correct:</p>
<ul>
<li>I began music lessons when I was 6.</li>
<li>The story began in the Colonial Period.</li>
<li>Where were you when the game began?</li>
<li>Our relationship began when we were in high school.</li>
</ul>
<p>A participle can’t be used all by itself as a verb. Another verb has to go with it. So you can’t say something “begun.” You have to say it “has begun,” “had begun,” “was begun,” “will be begun,” and so on.</p>
<p>“Begun” would be wrong in every one of the examples above and in any other sentence like them.</p>
<p>Here are some correct uses of “begun.” Notice the helping verb (the auxiliary verb) that goes along with it. The verbs can be separated–such as by “not”–but they still work together.</p>
<ul>
<li>You cannot be seated after the play has begun.</li>
<li>I have begun a shopping list.</li>
<li>We have not yet begun to fight.</li>
</ul>
<p>Likewise, if you are using “had” or “have” or another auxiliary, you must use “begun” and not “began.” These sentences are all wrong:</p>
<p>WRONG - Have you began your assignment?
WRONG - My shift had began at 3:00.
WRONG - The party has not began yet.</p>
<p>because tortoises are ''plural"</p>