at first
IdiomsExample Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
He was working from home on 13 August when he first noticed the smell of smoke, at first thinking someone was having a barbecue.
From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026
Perhaps this resolution wasn’t as minor as it seemed at first glance.
From Salon ● Sep. 10, 2026
Heder at first kept it on her desk at home, but had to move it because she began to feel the statuette’s crossed arms quietly judging her as she worked.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026
The recent surge, at first thought to be the same, was something even more formidable.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026
It seemed, at first, to be the cushiony underside of a mushroom.
From "The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest" by Aubrey Hartman
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.
