Final answer:
In a user-defined Java thread class, the start() method is the starting point that initiates the thread by calling the run() method.
Step-by-step explanation:
The start() method is the starting point for a user-defined Java thread class. When a thread is instantiated, you call the start() method on the instance of your thread.
The start() method is a part of the Thread class in Java and is responsible for starting a newly created thread. It does this by calling the run() method of the Thread class or its subclass where the actual work of the thread is defined.