point of departure vs beginning

point of departure and beginning both are nouns.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
point of departure	Yes	No	No	No
beginning	Yes	Yes	No	No

As nouns, beginning is a hypernym of point of departure; that is, beginning is a word with a broader meaning than point of departure:

Other hypernyms of point of departure include commencement, start.

As nouns, beginning is a hypernym of point of departure; that is, beginning is a word with a broader meaning than point of departure:

point of departure: a place from which an enterprise or expedition is launched
beginning: the place where something begins, where it springs into being

Other hypernyms of point of departure include origin, root, rootage, source.

point of departure (noun)	beginning (noun)
a beginning from which an enterprise is launched	the act of starting something
a place from which an enterprise or expedition is launched	the first part or section of something
	the event consisting of the start of something
	the place where something begins, where it springs into being
	the time at which something is supposed to begin

point of departure (adjective)	beginning (adjective)
	serving to begin