English · Word Candidate

first

/fɜːst/

Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.

Also seen as: firstmost · firsts

Sense 1

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

Preceding all others of a series or kind; the ordinal of one; earliest.

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

Trước tất cả những thứ khác trong một loạt hoặc loại; thứ nhất; sớm nhất

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Adjective

Examples

Hancock was first to arrive.

Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01)

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01 via kaikki.org).

Sense 2

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

Most eminent or exalted; most excellent; chief; highest.

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

Nổi bật nhất hoặc cao quý nhất; tuyệt vời nhất; chính; cao nhất

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Adjective

Examples

Demosthenes was the first orator of Greece.

Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01)

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01 via kaikki.org).

Sense 3

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

Before anything else; firstly.

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

Trước bất cứ điều gì khác; trước tiên

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Adverb

Examples

Clean the sink first, before you even think of starting to cook.

Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01)

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01 via kaikki.org).

Sense 4

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

For the first time.

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

Lần đầu tiên

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Adverb

Examples

I first witnessed a death when I was nine years old.

Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01)

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01 via kaikki.org).

Common questions

What does “first” mean?

Preceding all others of a series or kind; the ordinal of one; earliest.

Is “first” formal or informal?

No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.