at first
Initially, at the start, as in At first the berries were green, but when they ripened they turned bright red. [Second half of 1500s]
Words Nearby at first
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
How to use at first in a sentence
My attachment to the song became especially pronounced last Christmas, when I had my first love-at-first-sight experience.
Even Mr. Seward, cautious and conservative diplomat as he was, at-first "opposed any concession or surrender of the prisoners."
The Every-day Life of Abraham Lincoln | Francis Fisher BrowneIt was a sudden smite,—one of those flash-in-the-pan, love-at-first-sight affairs.
Marion's Faith. | Charles KingShe recollected her love-at-first-sight for the pretty bride, and well-nigh regarded the friendship as a romance of her girlhood.
Heartsease | Charlotte M. YongeAnd it was always the same round-faced, beamy-looking girl—not Miss Cross-at-first, certainly.
The Girls and I | Mary Louisa Stewart Molesworth
It was—the light was full in her face, and she was frowning just the sort of way I remembered—it was Miss Cross-at-first!
The Girls and I | Mary Louisa Stewart Molesworth
Browse