first

first  (fûrst)

n.

1. The ordinal number matching the number one in a series.

2. The one coming, occurring, or ranking before or above all others.

3. The beginning; the outset: from the first; at first.

4. Music The voice or instrument highest in pitch or carrying the principal part.

5. The transmission gear or corresponding gear ratio used to produce the range of lowest drive speeds in a motor vehicle.

6. The winning position in a contest: finished the season in first.

7. Baseball

a. First base.

b. A first baseman.

adj.

1. Corresponding in order to the number one.

2. Coming before all others in order or location: the first house on your left.

3. Occurring or acting before all others in time; earliest: the first day of spring.

4. Ranking above all others, as in importance or quality; foremost: was first in the class.

5. Music Being highest in pitch or carrying the principal part: first trumpet.

6. Of, relating to, or being the transmission gear or corresponding gear ratio used to produce the range of lowest drive speeds in a motor vehicle.

7. Of, related to, or being a member of the U.S. president's household: first daughter Amy Carter.

adv.

1. Before or above all others in time, order, rank, or importance: arrived first; forgot to light the oven first.

2. For the first time.

3. Rather; preferably: would die first.

4. In the first place; to begin with. See Usage Note at firstly.

Idiom:

first off/thing

From the start; immediately: Why wasn't I told first off? When I get to work, I have to call my lawyer first thing.

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[Middle English, from Old English fyrst; see per¹ in Indo-European roots.]

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first

Adjective

1. earliest in time or order

2. rated, graded, or ranked above all other levels: the First Lord of the Admiralty

3. denoting the lowest forward gear in a motor vehicle

4. Music denoting the highest voice part in a chorus or one of the sections of an orchestra: the first violin

Noun

1. the person or thing coming before all others

2. the beginning or outset

3. Education chiefly Brit an honours degree of the highest class

4. the lowest forward gear in a motor vehicle

Adverb

1. before anything else: I would advise you to try surgery first

2. for the first time: this story first came to public attention in January 1984 [Old English fyrest]

Thesaurus

Noun	1.	first - the first or highest in an ordering or series; "He wanted to be the first" number one former - the first of two or the first mentioned of two; "Tom and Dick were both heroes but only the former is remembered today" rank - relative status; "his salary was determined by his rank and seniority"
	2.	first - the first element in a countable series; "the first of the month" number 1, number one no., ordinal, ordinal number - the number designating place in an ordered sequence
	3.	first - the time at which something is supposed to begin; "they got an early start"; "she knew from the get-go that he was the man for her" offset, outset, showtime, commencement, get-go, starting time, beginning, kickoff, start birth - the time when something begins (especially life); "they divorced after the birth of the child"; "his election signaled the birth of a new age" incipience, incipiency - beginning to exist or to be apparent; "he placed the incipience of democratic faith at around 1850"; "it is designed to arrest monopolies in their incipiency" point in time, point - an instant of time; "at that point I had to leave" starting point, terminus a quo - earliest limiting point threshold - the starting point for a new state or experience; "on the threshold of manhood"
	4.	first - the fielding position of the player on a baseball team who is stationed at first of the bases in the infield (counting counterclockwise from home plate) first base position - (in team sports) the role assigned to an individual player; "what position does he play?" baseball team - a team that plays baseball
	5.	first - an honours degree of the highest class first-class honours degree honours, honours degree - a university degree with honors double first - a first-class honours degree in two subjects Britain, Great Britain, U.K., UK, United Kingdom, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland - a monarchy in northwestern Europe occupying most of the British Isles; divided into England and Scotland and Wales and Northern Ireland; `Great Britain' is often used loosely to refer to the United Kingdom
	6.	first - the lowest forward gear ratio in the gear box of a motor vehicle; used to start a car moving first gear, low gear, low auto, automobile, car, motorcar, machine - a motor vehicle with four wheels; usually propelled by an internal combustion engine; "he needs a car to get to work" gear mechanism, gear - a mechanism for transmitting motion for some specific purpose (as the steering gear of a vehicle)
Adj.	1.	first - preceding all others in time or space or degree; "the first house on the right"; "the first day of spring"; "his first political race"; "her first baby"; "the first time"; "the first meetings of the new party"; "the first phase of his training" front - relating to or located in the front; "the front lines"; "the front porch" early - at or near the beginning of a period of time or course of events or before the usual or expected time; "early morning"; "an early warning"; "early diagnosis"; "an early death"; "took early retirement"; "an early spring"; "early varieties of peas and tomatoes mature before most standard varieties" original - being or productive of something fresh and unusual; or being as first made or thought of; "a truly original approach"; "with original music"; "an original mind" primary - of first rank or importance or value; direct and immediate rather than secondary; "primary goals"; "a primary effect"; "primary sources"; "a primary interest" last - coming after all others in time or space or degree or being the only one remaining; "the last time I saw Paris"; "the last day of the month"; "had the last word"; "waited until the last minute"; "he raised his voice in a last supreme call"; "the last game of the season"; "down to his last nickel"
	2.	first - indicating the beginning unit in a series 1st ordinal - being or denoting a numerical order in a series; "ordinal numbers"; "held an ordinal rank of seventh"
	3.	first - serving to set in motion; "the magazine's inaugural issue"; "the initiative phase in the negotiations"; "an initiatory step toward a treaty"; "his first (or maiden) speech in Congress"; "the liner's maiden voyage" initiative, initiatory, maiden, inaugural opening - first or beginning; "the memorable opening bars of Beethoven's Fifth"; "the play's opening scene"
	4.	first - serving to begin; "the beginning canto of the poem"; "the first verse" beginning opening - first or beginning; "the memorable opening bars of Beethoven's Fifth"; "the play's opening scene"
	5.	first - ranking above all others; "was first in her class"; "the foremost figure among marine artists"; "the top graduate" foremost, world-class best - (superlative of `good') having the most positive qualities; "the best film of the year"; "the best solution"; "the best time for planting"; "wore his best suit"
	6.	first - highest in pitch or chief among parts or voices or instruments or orchestra sections; "first soprano"; "the first violin section"; "played first horn" music - an artistic form of auditory communication incorporating instrumental or vocal tones in a structured and continuous manner second - a part or voice or instrument or orchestra section lower in pitch than or subordinate to the first; "second flute"; "the second violins"
Adv.	1.	first - before anything else; "first we must consider the garter snake" first of all, first off, firstly, foremost
	2.	first - the initial time; "when Felix first saw a garter snake" for the first time
	3.	first - before another in time, space, or importance; "I was here first"; "let's do this job first"
	4.	first - prominently forward; "he put his best foot foremost" foremost

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first

adjective 1. earliest, initial, opening, introductory, original, maiden, primitive, primordial, primeval, pristine

adjective 2. top, best, winning, premier

adjective 3. elementary, key, basic, primary, fundamental, cardinal, rudimentary, elemental

adjective 4. foremost, highest, greatest, leading, head, ruling, chief, prime, supreme, principal, paramount, overriding, pre-eminent

noun 5. novelty, innovation, originality, new experience

adverb 6. to begin with, firstly, initially, at the beginning, in the first place, beforehand, to start with, at the outset, before all else from the first start, beginning, outset, the very beginning, introduction, starting point, inception, commencement, the word `go' (informal)

Translations

first [fəːst] adj → primero

adv (= before others) → primero;

(when listing reasons etc) → en primer lugar, primeramente

n (person) (in race) → primero/a;

(AUT) (also: first gear) → primera;

at first → al principio;

first of all → ante todo;

the first of January → el uno or primero de enero;

in the first instance → en primer lugar;

I'll do it first thing tomorrow → lo haré mañana a primera hora;

for the first time → por primera vez;

head first → de cabeza;

from the (very) first → desde el principio

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first [fəːst] adj → premier/ière

adv (= before other people) → le premier, la première (= before other things); en premier, d'abord (= when listing reasons etc); en premier lieu, premièrement (= in the beginning); au début

n (= person) (in race) → premier/ière;

(Brit) (Scol) → mention f très bien;

(Aut) → première f;

the first of January → le premier janvier;

at first → au commencement, au début;

first of all → tout d'abord, pour commencer;

in the first instance → en premier lieu;

I'll do it first thing tomorrow → je le ferai tout de suite demain matin

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first [fəːst] adj → erste(r, s)

adv → als Erste(r, s);

(before other things) → zuerst;

(when listing reasons etc) → erstens;

(for the first time) → zum ersten Mal

n → Erste(r, s);

(Aut) (also: first gear) → der erste Gang;

(Brit) (Scol) → Eins f;

the first of January → der erste Januar;

at first → zuerst, zunächst;

first of all → vor allem;

in the first instance → zuerst or zunächst einmal;

I'll do it first thing (tomorrow) → ich werde es (morgen) als Erstes tun;

from the very first → gleich von Anfang an

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first [fəːst] adj → primo/a

adv (= before others) → il primo, la prima (= before other things); per primo (= for the first time); per la prima volta;

(when listing reasons etc) → per prima cosa

n (= person) (in race) → primo/a;

(BRIT ) (SCOL) → laurea con lode;

(AUT) → prima;

at first → dapprima, all'inizio;

first of all → prima di tutto;

in the first instance → prima di tutto, in primo luogo;

I'll do it first thing tomorrow → lo farò per prima cosa domani;

from the (very) first → fin dall'inizio, fin dal primo momento;

the first of January → il primo (di) gennaio

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first

adjectiv / adv first [fəːst]

before all others in place, time or rank the first person to arrive; The boy spoke first. eerste الأوَّل пръв první første; først erst, zuerst πρώτος primero esimene, esimesena اول ensimmäinen, ensiksi premier, première רִאשוֹן प्रथम, पहला prvi, na prvom mjestu első pertama fyrstur primo 最初の[] 처음의, 첫번째의 pirmas pirmais pertama eerst først, som nummer én/den første (jako) pierwszy primeiro primul первый prvý prvi prvi först, första เป็นอันดับที่หนึ่ง ilk 第一 перший مقام میں سب سے پہلے thứ nhất; đầu tiên 第一

adv

before doing anything else Shall we eat now?' `Wash your hands first! eers أوَّلا първо nejdříve først zuerst πρώτα primero kõigepealt ابتدا ensin d'abord קוֹדֶם आरम्भ में ponajprije, prvo először (is) lebih dulu á undan prima まず最初に ! 맨 처음, 첫째로, 무엇보다 먼저 pirma, pirmiausia pirmkārt; vispirms dahulu eerst først najpierw primeiro mai întâi сперва najskôr najprej najpre först เป็นอันดับแรก ก่อนทำสิ่งอื่น önce 先 спершу, спочатку کچھ بھی کرنے سے قبل trước hết 先

n

the person, animal etc that does something before any other person, animal etc the first to arrive. eerste الأوَّل първенец první første der/die/das Erste πρώτος primero esimene اولین ensimmäinen premier/-ière הַרִאשוֹן प्रथम, पहला prvi (najbolji) ucenik, osoba... az első yang pertama fyrstur primo 最初のもの 첫 번째의 것 pirmasis pirmais pertama de eerste den første pierwszy primeiro primul, prima первый (человек и т.п.) prvý prvi prvi första, förste คนหรือสัตว์ที่มาก่อนคนอื่น ilk kişi/şey, birinci kişi/şey 首先 той, хто перший کوئی شخص یا جانور جو سب سے پہلے کچھ کرے người đầu tiên; vật đầu tiên 首先

adv firstly

in the first place I have three reasons for not going – firstly, it's cold, secondly, I'm tired, and thirdly, I don't want to! eerstens أولا на първо място za prvé for det første erstens πρώτον, κατ' αρχήν en primer lugar esiteks اولاً ensinnäkin en premier lieu רֵאשִית पहले prvo, prije svega, ponajprije először pertama í fyrsta lagi in primo luogo 第一に 첫째로, 우선 pirma pirmkārt yang pertama ten eerste for det første po pierwsze primeiro în primul rând во-первых po prvé prvič najpre för det första อันดับแรก birincisi 第一 по-перше پہلی بات thứ nhất 第一

also adj first aid

first-aid treatment. eerstehulp مُساعَدَه أوَّلِيَّه първа помощ první pomoc førstehjælp Erste Hilfe πρώτες βοήθειες primeros auxilios esmaabi کمک های اولیه ensiapu premiers soins עֶזרָה רִאשוֹנָה प्राथमिक चिकित्सा prva pomoć elsősegély pertolongan pertama hjálp í viðlögum, skyndihjálp pronto soccorso 応急手当 응급 처치 pirmoji pagalba pirmā palīdzība; pirmās palīdzības- bantuan kecemasan eerste hulp førstehjelp pierwsza pomoc primeiros socorros prim ajutor первая помощь prvá pomoc prva pomoč prva pomoć första hjälpen อุปกรณ์, การรักษาผู้ป่วย ilk yardım 急救 перша допомога; швидка допомога مریض یا زخمی کی پہلی طبی امداد sự sơ cứu 急救

adjectiv / n first-born

(one's) oldest (child). eersgeborene البِكْر първороден prvorozený førstefødt erstgeboren, der/die/das Erstgeborene πρωτότοκος primogénito esiklaps بزرگتر esikoinen premier-né בְּכוֹר पहली संतान prvorodeni (dijete); prvorođenac elsőszülött sulung frumgetinn, elstur primogenito 最初に生まれた 맨 먼저 태어난; 첫째 아이, 맏이 pirmagimis pirmdzimtais anak pertama eerstgeboren førstefødt pierworodny primogénito primul născut первенец prvorodený, -á prvorojen(ec) prvorođeni förstfödd เกี่ยวกับคนหัวปี ilk doğan; ilk çocuk 最年長的(孩子) первісток پہلا بچہ đầu lòng; cả 最年长的（孩子）

adj first-ˈclass

1 of the best quality a first-class hotel. eersteklas دَرَجَه أولى първокласен prvotřídní førsteklasses; top- erstklassig πρώτης κατηγορίας de primera clase esmaklassiline درجه یک ensiluokkainen première classe de מַחלָקָה רִאשוֹנָה पहला दर्जा najbolji első osztályú terbaik fyrsta flokks di prima classe 一流の 일류의 pirmaklasis, aukščiausios klasės pirmšķirīgs kelas pertama eersteklas førsteklasses, på/av første klasse najlepszej jakości de primeira classe (de) clasa întâi первоклассный prvotriedny prvovrsten prvoklasan första klassens ชั้นเยี่ยม birinci sınıf 第一流的 першокласний, першорядний عمدہ قسم کا hạng nhất 第一流的

2 very good This food is first-class! eersteklas مُمتاز، درجَه أولى отличен prvotřídní førsteklasses; i top; uovertruffen ausgezeichnet πρώτης τάξης de primera calidad, excelente eriti hea عالی erinomainen de première qualité מְעוּלֶה बहुत अच्छा odlican elsőrendű lezat fyrsta flokks, fyrirtaks di prima qualità すばらしい 매우 좋은 aukščiausios kokybės, geriausias lielisks sangat sedap eersteklas førsteklasses pierwszorzędny excelente (de) cali­tatea întâi превосходный prvotriedny prvovrsten sjajan förstklassig เยี่ยมมาก çok güzel, mükemmel 極好的 першокласний بہت اچھا rất ngon; rất tốt 极好的

3 (for) travelling in the best and most expensive part of the train, plane, ship etc a first-class passenger ticket; (also adverb ) She always travels first-class. eersteklas دَرَجَه أولى първа класа v první třídě førsteklasses-; på første klasse erster Klasse πρώτη θέση de primera clase esimese(s) klassi(s) درجه یک ensimmäisen luokan première classe en מַחלָקָה רִאשוֹנָה पहला दर्जा prvorazredan, najbolji első osztályú kelas satu fyrsta farrÿmi in prima classe １等の 일등석[]의; 일등석[]으로 pirmoji klasė (par ceļošanu) pirmās klases-; pirmajā klasē kelas pertama eersteklas første klasse pierwszej klasy de primeira classe (de) la clasa întâi первого класса prvá trieda v prvem razredu prva klasa förstaklass-, första klass ตั๋วสำหรับเดินทาง birinci mevki 頭等車/艙 такий, що належить до першого класу ریل، جہاز وغیرہ کے سب سے بہترین حصے میں سفر کرنا hạng nhất 头等车（舱）

adjectiv / adv first-ˈhand

(of a story, description etc) obtained directly, not through various other people a first-hand account; I heard the story first-hand. eerstehands مُباشِر، دون وَسيط от първа ръка z první ruky førstehånds-; på første hånd aus erster Hand από πρώτο χέρι directo, personal; directamente, personalmente; de primera mano vahetu(lt) دست اول ensi käden de première main מִמָקוֹר רִאשוֹן स्वत:, प्रत्यक्ष iz prve ruke első kézből (való) secara langsung milliliðalaus; frá fyrstu hendi di prima mano 直接の[] 직접적인; 직접 iš pirmųjų lūpų tieši; no pirmavota orang yang pertama uit de eerste hand førstehånds-, på første hånd z pierwszej ręki em primeira mão direct (de la sursă) (полученный) из первых рук z prvej ruky iz prve roke iz prve ruke förstahands-, i första hand, direkt โดยตรง (ประสบการณ์) ilk elden, kaynağından 直接的/地 з перших рук جس کا براہ راست تجربہ ہوا ہو mắt thấy tai nghe 直接的（地）

adj first-ˈrate

of the best quality She is a first-rate architect. eersteklas; eersterangs رائِع، مِن الطِّراز الأوَّل първокачествен prvotřídní førsterangs- ausgezeichnet πρώτης τάξης estupendo esmajärguline تراز اول ensiluokkainen excellent מְעוּלֶה अति उत्तम prvorazredan első osztályú terbaik fyrsta flokks, afbragðs- di prim'ordine 一流の 일류의, 최상의 aukščiausios klasės pirmšķirīgs terbaik uitstekend tipp topp, førsteklasses pierwszorzędny excelente de primă mână, exce­lent первоклассный prvotriedny prvovrsten prvoklasni förstklassig, prima ชั้นหนึ่ง birinci sınıf 第一流的 першорядний اول درجے کا thượng hạng 第一流的

at first

at the beginning At first I didn't like him. eers; aanvanklik في البِدايَه първоначално z počátku først; i begyndelsen zuerst στην αρχή al principio algul در ابتدا aluksi au début בַּהָתחָלָה प्रारंभ में spocetka, isprva először, kezdetben mula-mula til að byrja með all'inizio 最初は 처음에 iš pradžių vispirms pada mulanya in het begin i begynnelsen, til å begynne med na początku no começo la început сначала zo začiatku najprej u početku först ตั้งแต่ตอนแรก ilkin, ilk önce 起先 спочатку شروع میں lúc đầu; ban đầu 起先

at first hand

obtained etc directly I was able to acquire information at first hand. eerstehands مُباشَرةً، بدون وَسيط от източника z první ruky på første hånd aus erster Hand από πρώτο χέρι de primera mano otsesest allikast بی واسطه ensi käden de première main מִמָקוֹר רִאשוֹן स्वत:, प्रत्यक्ष direktno, iz prve ruke első kézből secara langsung milliliðalaus direttamente 直接に 직접 iš pirmųjų lūpų, iškart no pirmavota secara langsung uit de eerste hand på første hånd z pierwszej ręki em primeira mão direct (de la sursă) из первых рук z prvej ruky iz prve roke iz prve ruke direkt ได้มาโดยตรง doğrudan, kaynağından 直接地 з перших рук براہ راست trực tiếp 直接地

first and foremost

first of all. allereers أوَّلا وقَبل كل شَيء преди всичко především først og fremmest; frem for alt zu allererst πρώτο και κύριο antes que nada eeskätt اولین و مهم ترین kaikkein ensimmäiseksi en tout premier lieu בָּראש וּבַרִאשוֹנָה सर्वप्रथम prije svega mindenekelőtt pertama sekali fyrst og fremst soprattutto まず第一に 무엇보다 먼저 pirmiausia pirmām kārtām pertama sekali bovenal først og fremst przede wszystkim antes de tudo în primul (şi în primul) rând прежде всего predovšetkým na prvem mestu prvo i najvažnije först ก่อนอื่น her şeyden önce 首先 насамперед سب سے پہلے đầu tiên và chủ yếu 首先

first of all

to begin with; the most important thing is First of all, let's clear up the mess; First of all, the scheme is impossible – secondly, we can't afford it. eerstens أولا، بدايَةً най-напред především for det første; først og fremmest zu allererst πρώτ'απ' όλα, κατ' αρχήν en primer lugar kõigepealt قبل از همه ensinnäkin tout d'abord קוֹדֶם כּול सर्वप्रथम prije svega, ponajprije elsősorban terpenting, pertama-tama í fyrsta lagi prima di tutto まず最初に 먼저, 우선 pirmiausia vispirms pertama-tama om te beginnen for det første przede wszystkim antes de tudo în primul rând в первую очередь predovšetkým najprej pre svega allra först, först och främst เป็นอย่างแรก önce, ilk önce 首先 насамперед سب سے پہلے trước hết 首先