initial

[ih-nish-uhl]

adjective

1. of, relating to, or occurring at the beginning; first.

   the initial step in a process.

2. Phonetics.,  occurring at the beginning of a word or syllable, as the (k) sound of kite, chasm, or quay.

noun

1. an initial letter, as of a word.

2. the first letter of a proper name.

3. a letter of extra size or an ornamental character used at the beginning of a chapter or other division of a book, manuscript, or the like.

verb (used with object)

initialed, initialing , initialled, initialling .

1. to mark or sign with an initial or the initials of one's name, especially as a token of preliminary or informal approval.

initial

/ ɪˈnɪʃəl /

adjective

1. of, at, or concerning the beginning

noun

1. the first letter of a word, esp a person's name

2. printing a large sometimes highly decorated letter set at the beginning of a chapter or work

3. botany a cell from which tissues and organs develop by division and differentiation; a meristematic cell

verb

1. (tr) to sign with one's initials, esp to indicate approval; endorse

Other Word Forms

• initialer noun
• initially adverb
• preinitial verb (used with object)
• subinitial verb (used with object)
• uninitialed adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of initial¹

First recorded in 1520–30; from Latin initiālis, equivalent to initi(um) “beginning” ( init-, noun derivative of inīre “to enter, begin”; in- in- ² + īre “to go”; comes ) + -ium -ium ) + -alis -al ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of initial¹

C16: from Latin initiālis of the beginning, from initium beginning, literally: an entering upon, from inīre to go in, from _in- ² + īre to go

Example Sentences

“The rest of the band had asked a few times over the years,” he says, his voice friendly and bright despite his initial hesitation about this interview, “but it never felt right until now.”

Read more on Los Angeles Times

The White House did not respond to questions about the timing of a potential initial public offering.

Read more on MarketWatch

In a statement, Unite says members are "furious" after rejecting an initial pay offer of a 3.2% rise followed by a further offer of 3.6% from the employer.

Read more on BBC

And her own initial research ideas, like studying the impact of nutrition on cancer, now strike her as “naive” because there was no readily available data for her to analyze.

Read more on MarketWatch

In August, the Japanese company’s payments app operator PayPay submitted paperwork for an initial public offering in the U.S., a move that could add to SoftBank’s coffers as it pours billions into AI-related investments.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• basic 
• introductory 
• original