decentar

Means to cut into or start using something whole for the first time — decentar un jamón, decentar una hogaza de pan (to make the first cut into a ham or a loaf of bread). It's a specific, somewhat old-fashioned verb for that first-cut moment, not a general word for "begin."

• Vamos a decentar el jamón para la cena. — We're going to cut into the ham for dinner.
• Nadie había decentado todavía la hogaza de pan. — Nobody had cut into the loaf of bread yet.
• Decentaron el queso apenas llegaron los invitados. — They cut into the cheese as soon as the guests arrived.

Don't use decentar as a general synonym for empezar (to start) — it specifically describes the first cut into a whole food item, not starting any activity.

Often confused with empezar.