foremost

[ fawr-mohst, -muhst, fohr- ]

adjective

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

   the foremost surgeons.

   Synonyms: paramount, principal, chief, prime, primary

foremost

/ ˈfɔːˌməʊst /

adjective

1. first in time, place, rank, etc

Word History and Origins

Origin of foremost¹

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of foremost¹

Old English formest , from forma first; related to Old Saxon formo first, Old High German fruma advantage

Idioms and Phrases

see first and foremost .

Example Sentences

First and foremost, more or less investment in these things will lead to faster or slower growth rates.

From Nautilus

Rich results make for a better search experience for the users, first and foremost.

From Search Engine Watch

First and foremost, this is a public service project meant to help voters navigate the latest voting rules in their state.

From FiveThirtyEight

Content marketing should always be motivated first and foremost by your business values, not your bottom line.

From Search Engine Watch

In February, America’s foremost feminist legal expert, Supreme Court justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, said she would like to see the process started afresh, so that the amendment—which she wholeheartedly supports—could stand on unimpeachable grounds.

From Quartz

The New York governor was the foremost Democrat to stand athwart the Reagan Revolution.

From The Daily Beast

Even the best of us can hurt the people who come to us for care when we forget that our foremost obligation is to them.

From The Daily Beast

The foremost trendsetter of Scandi-sleek design and New Nordic food knows no limit to its progressive reputation.

From The Daily Beast

The cities of the heartland came into existence, first and foremost, as economic entities.

From The Daily Beast

And, if this is once again removed, the local population will likely blame, first and foremost, the anti-ISIS coalition.

From The Daily Beast

That was a considerable sensible commandment of yourn, always to shoot the foremost of the Mexicans when they attacked.

From Project Gutenberg

Every man will still earn his own living and that of his family as best he can, relying first and foremost upon his own efforts.

From Project Gutenberg

The Stradivarian school became the foremost, most numerous and soon was to be the most imitated, of all.

From Project Gutenberg

A harder fate awaited the foremost knightly defenders of Kildrummy.

From Project Gutenberg

They had not pulled fifty yards from their late home when she gave a sudden lurch to port and went down stern foremost.

From Project Gutenberg