first and foremost

Idioms and Phrases

Also, first of all . Most important, primarily; also, to begin with. For example, First and foremost, I want to thank our sponsors , or What we need, first and foremost, is a new secretary , or We have to deal, first of all, with the early history . The first term, dating from the late 1300s, is redundant, since first and foremost mean virtually the same thing. Both it and the variant, which dates from the mid-1500s, are used to give emphasis to the initial item in a list of several. Also see first off ; first thing .

Example Sentences

To talk about "boycotting" men has a lot of value, even if women ultimately don't do it, first and foremost because it helps women question toxic assumptions they were raised to believe.

From Salon

"It's evident that it is first and foremost children and women who are paying a price for this senseless war," he added.

From BBC

They’ll need to outwit him, first and foremost, and they prove that they can.

From Los Angeles Times

“Future drought is mainly determined by how warm it gets, and how much CO2 we emit. So first and foremost is to control the CO2 emissions.”

From Los Angeles Times

As election night projections looked increasingly favorable for Donald Trump, the tech titan who perhaps did more than anyone to shift Silicon Valley rightward, began taking his victory laps, first and foremost by replaying all his most ignominious hits.

From Slate

Related Words

• basically
• chiefly
• generally
• importantly
• largely
• mostly
• notably
• particularly
• predominantly