first

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

1. n. The ordinal number matching the number one in a series.
2. n. The one coming, occurring, or ranking before or above all others.
3. n. The beginning; the outset: from the first; at first.
4. n. Music The voice or instrument highest in pitch or carrying the principal part.
5. n. The transmission gear or corresponding gear ratio used to produce the range of lowest drive speeds in a motor vehicle.
6. n. The winning position in a contest: finished the season in first.
7. n. Baseball First base.
8. n. Baseball A first baseman.
9. adj. Corresponding in order to the number one.
10. adj. Coming before all others in order or location: the first house on your left.
11. adj. Occurring or acting before all others in time; earliest: the first day of spring.
12. adj. Ranking above all others, as in importance or quality; foremost: was first in the class.
13. adj. Music Being highest in pitch or carrying the principal part: first trumpet.
14. adj. Of, relating to, or being the transmission gear or corresponding gear ratio used to produce the range of lowest drive speeds in a motor vehicle.
15. adj. Of, related to, or being a member of the U.S. president's household: first daughter Amy Carter.
16. adv. Before or above all others in time, order, rank, or importance: arrived first; forgot to light the oven first.
17. adv. For the first time.
18. adv. Rather; preferably: would die first.
19. adv. In the first place; to begin with. See Usage Note at firstly.
20. idiom. off From the start; immediately: Why wasn't I told first off? When I get to work, I have to call my lawyer first thing.

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. Being before all others; being the initial unit or aggregate in order of occurrence or arrangement as to time, place, or rank: the ordinal of one.
2. Foremost in time; preceding all others of the kind in order of time: as, Adam was the first man; I was the first guest to arrive.
3. Foremost in place; before all others from the point of view or consideration: as, the first man in a rank or line.
4. Foremost in importance or estimation; before or superior to all others in character, quality, or degree: as, Demosthenes was the first orator of Greece; the part of first villain in a play; wheat of the first grade; specifically, in music, highest or chief among several voices or instruments of the same class: as, first alto; first horn.
5. Synonyms Primary, primordial, original, primitive, pristine, earliest. See comparison under primary.
6. Highest, chief, principal, capital, foremost, leading.
7. n. That which is first; the beginning. or that which makes or constitutes a beginning.
8. n. In music: The voice or instrument that takes the highest or chief part in its class, especially in an orchestra or chorus; a leader of a part or group of performers.
9. n. The interval and concord of the unison or prime. See unison and prime.
10. n. Same as first base (which see, above).
11. n. The highest rank in an examination for honors: as, he got a first in mathematics. See double-first.
12. n. Immediately.
13. Before all others in place or progression, rank, order of time, etc.
14. Hence Sooner; before doing or suffering (that is, so as not to do or suffer) some act or result: as, I will not do it, I will die first.
15. n. Time; time granted; respite: same as frist.

Wiktionary

1. adj. Having no predecessor. The ordinal number corresponding to one.
2. adv. Before anything else; firstly.
3. n. uncountable The person or thing in the first position.
4. n. uncountable The first gear of an engine.
5. n. countable Something that has never happened before; a new occurrence.
6. n. countable, baseball first base
7. n. countable, UK, colloquial A first-class honours degree.
8. n. countable, colloquial A first-edition copy of some publication.
9. n. A fraction of an integer ending in one. Oneth.
10. n. obsolete Time; time granted; respite.

GNU Webster's 1913

1. adj. Preceding all others of a series or kind; the ordinal of one; earliest.
2. adj. Foremost; in front of, or in advance of, all others.
3. adj. Most eminent or exalted; most excellent; chief; highest.
4. adv. Before any other person or thing in time, space, rank, etc.; -- much used in composition with adjectives and participles.
5. n. (Mus.) The upper part of a duet, trio, etc., either vocal or instrumental; -- so called because it generally expresses the air, and has a preëminence in the combined effect.

WordNet 3.0

1. adj. serving to set in motion
2. adv. the initial time
3. n. the first element in a countable series
4. adj. serving to begin
5. adv. before anything else
6. adv. before another in time, space, or importance
7. adj. highest in pitch or chief among parts or voices or instruments or orchestra sections
8. adj. indicating the beginning unit in a series
9. adj. ranking above all others
10. n. the first or highest in an ordering or series
11. n. the fielding position of the player on a baseball team who is stationed at first of the bases in the infield (counting counterclockwise from home plate)
12. adj. preceding all others in time or space or degree
13. n. an honours degree of the highest class
14. n. the lowest forward gear ratio in the gear box of a motor vehicle; used to start a car moving
15. adv. prominently forward
16. n. the time at which something is supposed to begin