Returns whether +self+ starts with any of the given +string_or_regexp+. Matches patterns against the beginning of +self+. For each given +string_or_regexp+, the pattern is: - +string_or_regexp+ itself, if it is a Regexp. - Regexp.quote(string_or_regexp), if +string_or_regexp+ is a string. Returns +true+ if any pattern matches the beginning, +false+ otherwise: 'hello'.start_with?('hell') # => true 'hello'.start_with?(/H/i) # => true 'hello'.start_with?('heaven', 'hell') # => true 'hello'.start_with?('heaven', 'paradise') # => false 'тест'.start_with?('т') # => true 'こんにちは'.start_with?('こ') # => true Related: String#end_with?.