first-line

[furst-lahyn]

adjective

1. available for immediate service, especially combat service.

   first-line troops.

2. of prime importance or quality.

first-line

adjective

1. acting or used as a first resort

   first-line treatment

   first-line batsmen

Word History and Origins

Origin of first-line¹

First recorded in 1895–1900

Example Sentences

Ms Edwards said the 10 companies in attendance at Thursday's meeting covered a "cross section" of first-line direct suppliers, covering the "whole eco-system" of the supply chain.

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Acetaminophen, or paracetamol, is the recommended first-line medication for pain and fever during pregnancy by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, the UK's Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, and other medical organisations worldwide.

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Some strains of the bacteria which causes the disease no longer respond to the first-line treatment, the antibiotic ceftriaxone.

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The numbers are still small but the reason this is worrying is because, once resistance in gonorrhoea becomes endemic, then it becomes extremely hard to treat, because ceftriaxone is the last first-line therapy we have for it.

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The new pill was equally effective for treating gonorrhoea and worked against strains of the infection that were resistant to current first-line treatments, such as ceftriaxone.

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