foremost

American  

[fawr-mohst, -muhst, fohr-] / ˈfɔrˌmoʊst, -məst, ˈfoʊr- /

adjective

1. first in place, order, rank, etc..

   the foremost surgeons.

   Synonyms:

   paramount, principal, chief, prime, primary

---

foremost British  

/ ˈfɔːˌməʊst /

adjective

1. first in time, place, rank, etc

---

foremost Idioms  

1. see first and foremost.

---

Etymology

Origin of foremost

before 1000; fore ¹ + -most; replacing Middle English, Old English formest, equivalent to form ( a ) first, variant of fruma (compare Latin prīmus ) + -est -est ¹

Explanation

Foremost is an adjective that means holding the highest position or rank. When naming advisors, presidents usually search for the foremost experts on various subjects. If you are the foremost in your profession, you're the expert people will seek out for an opinion. If your foremost concern in a project is money, all other factors are secondary. You can also use this word as an adverb meaning "before anything else." The film, Gone With the Wind, is set against the backdrop of the American Civil War, but first and foremost, it is a love story.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

foremost

Mizrahi was, at one time, one of the foremost purveyors of these frolicsome frocks.

From Salon ● Sep. 5, 2026

The process of naming the microbe included consultation with Kymberly Oakley, the world's foremost Malgana language expert.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 3, 2026

Standing microphones, placed on different tiers of the set, never let us forget that Wilson was first and foremost a conductor of voices.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026

"In order to maintain its presence, its foremost mission is to ensure that the government prevails no matter what threats are underway," Ochieng said.

From Barron's ● Sep. 1, 2026

I imagine a mother as a woman who, first and foremost, possesses a great deal of tact, especially toward her adolescent children, and not one who, like Momsy, pokes fun at me when I cry.

From "The Diary of a Young Girl" by Anne Frank