I Determiner Ordinal Number Fɜːst Fɜːrst Wife Turning

• his first wife
• the first turning on the right
• i didn't take the first bus.
• it was the first time they had ever met.

first

1. happening or coming before all other similar things or people; 1st
• his first wife
• the first turning on the right
• I didn't take the first bus.
• It was the first time they had ever met.
• It's always exciting to visit a country for the first time.
• students in their first year at college
• First impressions can be misleading.
• She resolved to do it at the first (= earliest) opportunity.
• King Edward I (= pronounced ‘King Edward the First’)
• the first of May/May 1st
• His second book is better than his first.

Extra Examples

• If he wants to see me, he should make the first move.
• Local voters gave Steven Hughes first preference.
• My first impulse was to run away.
• We're having chicken for the first course.
• When the first settlers moved into the area they faced immense hardship.
• You can have first choice of all the rooms.
2. the most important or best
• Your first duty is to your family.
• She won first prize in the competition.
• an issue of the first importance

Word Origin

• Old English fyr(e)st; of Germanic origin, related to Old Norse fyrstr and German Fürst ‘prince’, from an Indo-European root shared by Sanskrit prathama, Latin primus, and Greek prōtos.