Breakdown of El actor está a punto de empezar el discurso.
de
from / of
estar
to be (location/state)
a
to
empezar
to start / to begin
Questions & Answers about El actor está a punto de empezar el discurso.
What does está a punto de mean in this sentence?
Why do we use the infinitive empezar instead of conjugating it?
In Spanish, whenever a verb immediately follows a preposition like de (which is part of the set phrase a punto de), it must remain in the infinitive form. You will never conjugate a verb right after de.
Does discurso just mean a formal "discourse"?
It can, but its most common meaning in everyday Spanish is simply a "speech" (like one given by an actor, a politician, or at a wedding). Even though it looks like the English word "discourse," it is the standard, everyday word for a speech.