first-come
Americanadjective
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
LA28 organizers have said more stand-alone tickets will become available in 2027, not through lotteries but first-come, first-served sales.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 20, 2026
But glasses have been reserved for visitors planning to watch from the visitor attraction's rooftop terrace available on a first-come, first-served, basis.
From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2026
At this stage, markets do not know whether transits will be on a first-come, first-served basis or whether there will be a queuing system, said Alexis Ellender, an analyst at Kpler.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 16, 2026
People who can’t make a reservation will be admitted on a first-come, first-served basis.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 7, 2026
This is how five days later, we end up heading to Boston, where a clinic ship is landing for a day and taking patients for free on a first-come, first-serve basis.
From "Landscape with Invisible Hand" by M.T. Anderson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
