first

UK:*UK and possibly other pronunciationsUK and possibly other pronunciations/ˈfɜːrst/US:USA pronunciation: IPA and respellingUSA pronunciation: IPA/fɝst/ ,USA pronunciation: respelling(fûrst)

Collocations for "first"


Common phrases and expressions where native English speakers use the word "first" in context.

WordReference English Collocations © 2025

first

ⓘMost examples are given in US English. We have labeled exceptions as UK.
n
  1. was the very first (to)
  2. are the first to arrive
  3. be the first to [buy, have, finish]
  4. is the first of many (to come)
  5. the first of [several, hundreds, its kind]
  6. the first of three [wives, children, attempts]
  7. on the first of the [year, month]
  8. was the first of the [Royals, war poets, great masters] to
  9. was the first in my family to [go to college, become a doctor]
  10. that is the first that I have heard of it
  11. was a first for me
  12. a [world, US] first [in, for]
  13. is the first to [admit, volunteer, help]
  14. would be the first to admit (that)
  15. put the car in first
  16. the car is stuck in first
  17. first come, first served
  18. first in, last out
adj
  1. the first person to [discover, suggest, arrive]
  2. [is, was] the first person ever to [fly, make, appear]
  3. (the) first one [to the finish line, past the finishing line, past the post]
  4. would be the first [person, one] to admit that
  5. the first time I have [gone, said, tried]
  6. the first [step, period, attempt, chapter, obstacle]
  7. her first [experience, period, time]
  8. the first [available, free] (copy)
  9. make a [good, bad] first impression
  10. my first impressions are [that, of]
  11. (and) not for the first time
  12. [his, the baby's, my daughter's] first birthday
  13. a [narrative, script, story] in (the) first person
  14. (in) the first person [singular, plural]
  15. [took, won] first [place, prize] in
adv
  1. it first [appeared, became known] in
  2. it was first [published, launched, used]
  3. [finish, come, be] first (in a race)
  4. came first in the [race, class, competition]
  5. my [children, family] always come first
  6. [clean up, finish your dinner, take care of something] first
  7. first, there's the [issue, small matter] of
  8. first (of all), I'd like to [say, go, do]
  9. first and foremost
additional examples
  1. was the very first (to)
  2. the first person to [discover, suggest, arrive]
  3. are the first to arrive
  4. [is, was] the first person ever to [fly, make, appear]
  5. be the first to [buy, have, finish]
  6. first to [write, comment, like, review]
  7. is the first of many (to come)
  8. (the) first one [to the finish line, past the finishing line, past the post]
  9. the first of [several, hundreds, its kind]
  10. would be the first [person, one] to admit that
  11. the first of three [wives, children, attempts]
  12. the first time I have [gone, said, tried]
  13. on the first of the [year, month]
  14. the first [step, period, attempt, chapter, obstacle]
  15. was the first of the [Royals, war poets, great masters] to
  16. her first [experience, period, time]
  17. was the first in my family to [go to college, become a doctor]
  18. the first [available, free] (copy)
  19. that is the first that I have heard of it
  20. make a [good, bad] first impression
  21. was a first for me
  22. my first impressions are [that, of]
  23. a [world, US] first [in, for]
  24. the first-ever [woman, computer, photograph]
  25. is the first to [admit, volunteer, help]
  26. (and) not for the first time
  27. would be the first to admit (that)
  28. [his, the baby's, my daughter's] first birthday
  29. put the car in first
  30. a [narrative, script, story] in (the) first person
  31. the car is stuck in first
  32. (in) the first person [singular, plural]
  33. first come, first served
  34. [took, won] first [place, prize] in
  35. first in, last out
  36. it first [appeared, became known] in
  37. it was first [published, launched, used]
  38. [finish, come, be] first (in a race)
  39. came first in the [race, class, competition]
  40. my [children, family] always come first
  41. [clean up, finish your dinner, take care of something] first
  42. first, there's the [issue, small matter] of
  43. first (of all), I'd like to [say, go, do]
  44. first and foremost
  45. first things first
'first' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
AIDS - April - August - B - C - D - December - F - Friday - ID - Irish - January - July - June - May - Ministry - Monday - November - October - Russian - Saturday - September - Thursday - Tuesday - abroad - accent - addicted - advent - air - album - alone - amusing - anniversary - apartment - appear - appearance - appointment - apprehensive - around - ask - associate - attempt - award - awhile - barbecue - base - basically - bat - batch - become

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