initial

American  

[ih-nish-uhl] / ɪˈnɪʃ əl /

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.

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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 British  

/ ɪˈnɪʃəl /

adjective

1. of, at, or concerning the beginning

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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

Etymology

Origin of initial

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

Example Sentences

The parent of the Twitter-like platform went public last year through a special-purpose acquisition company, avoiding some of the red tape of a traditional initial public offering.

From The Wall Street Journal

Mr Gibson said he felt the initial response from the health trust - a phone call from a member of staff - was unprofessional.

From BBC

And with less demand, airlines naturally lowered prices — despite their initial hopes for a strong month, especially because of the Thanksgiving holiday.

From MarketWatch

Chief Executive Sam Altman has already scoured the world to build the pool of OpenAI’s investors and the company is now weighing a potential initial public offering, The Wall Street Journal previously reported.

From The Wall Street Journal

“It would not surprise us to see initial FY26 guidance underwhelm expectations,” he added.

From Barron's

Related Words

• basic
• introductory
• original