Fuel, especially ethanol, is injected in an internal combustion engine via at least one injection device into a combustion chamber, with the injection pressure of the fuel being temporarily increased during the starting phase of the internal combustion engine. The injected fuel quantity is divided among several injections in the intake phase during the start of the internal combustion engine, with at least two injections being performed during the intake phase and with the multiple injections being performed with high injection pressure already in the dragging phase for the first injections. The starting behavior can be improved when the quantity of fuel of the last fuel injection is lower than the quantity of each preceding fuel injection.