firstBrE /fɜːst/ NAmE /fɜːrst/► SEE ALLat first glance/sightcome firstfirst among equalsfirst and foremostfirst and lastfirst come, first served(in) the first flush of youth, enthusiasm, etc.(at) first handfirst of allfirst off/up(give sb, have, etc.) (the) first refusalfirst thing (tomorrow, in the morning, etc.)first things first(be) the first/last (person) to do sthfrom the (very) firstfrom first to lastget to first base (with sb/sth)have first call (on sb/sth)in the first instancein the first placemake the first moveput sb/sth firstthere’s a first time for everythingfeet firstin the first/top flighthead firstsee sb in hell firstnot know the first thing about sb/sthlast in, first outlove at first sightof the highest/first orderof a high order ●at first ˈglance/ˈsightas things seem at first; judging by first appearances一见之下；乍看上去◆At first glance, the exam paper looked fairly difficult, but once I got started I found it quite easy. 乍看上去试题好像很难，可是做起来还挺容易。●come ˈfirstbe treated as the most important person or thing in sb’s life看得最重；成为第一考虑◆His work always came first with Joe, which upset his wife a lot. 乔总是把工作放在第一位，这让他的妻子很不高兴。●ˌfirst among ˈequalsthe person or thing with the highest status in a group地位最高者；首要的事情◆Our history classes were usually open discussion-groups between us and our teacher, with the teacher as first among equals. 我们的历史课通常都是师生一起分成小组公开讨论，由老师来主持。●ˌfirst and ˈforemostbefore everything else; most importantly最重要地；首先◆First and foremost, we must ensure that the children are safe. 首先，我们必须保证孩子们的安全。◆Don’t forget, he is first and foremost an actor, not a singer. 别忘了，他首先是个演员，而不是歌手。●ˌfirst and ˈlastmainly; only主要地；仅仅◆The book is, first and last, an account of a poet’s development. 这本书主要来讲是对诗人成长历程的记述。◆I saw him for the first and last time at his father’s funeral. 我只见过他一次，那是在他父亲的葬礼上。●ˌfirst ˈcome, ˌfirst ˈserved (saying) people will be dealt with, seen, etc. strictly in the order in which they arrive, apply, etc.先来者先接待；按先后顺序供应◆We have 100 tickets for the performance, and they will be distributed on a first come, first served basis. 我们有 100 张演出门票，先到先得。●(in) the first flush of ˈyouth, enˈthusiasm, etc.when sb is young or sth is new（在）青春正盛时，热情高涨时◆By then, he was no longer in the first flush of youth. 那时他已经不再青春年少了。◆In the first flush of enthusiasm, we were able to get everyone interested in helping. 起初热情高涨时，我们还能发动所有有兴趣的人来帮忙。●(at) first ˈhandfrom your own experience or knowledge, rather than from sb else; directly第一手地；直接地◆I know at first hand what it is like to be poor; we always had very little money at home. 我对贫穷有切身的体验，我们家从来没什么钱。◆We have a first-hand account of the raid from a witness. 我们从一位目击者那里得到有关袭击的第一手信息。●ˌfirst of ˈall1.before doing anything else; at the beginning首先；第一◆First of all, let me ask you something. 首先，让我问你点儿事情。2.as the most important thing最重要地◆The content of any article needs, first of all, to be relevant to the reader. 首先，任何文章的内容都必须贴近读者。●first ˈoff/ˈup (informal) before anything else; to begin with首先；第一◆First off, we will choose the teams, then we can start the game. 首先，我们挑选队伍，然后开始比赛。●(give sb, have, etc.) (the) first reˈfusalthe opportunity to buy sth before it is offered for sale to others（给某人或拥有）优先购买权◆She promised to give me first refusal if she ever decides to sell the flat. 她答应一旦决定出售公寓，一定先问一下我要不要买。●first ˈthing (tomorrow, in the morning, etc.)at the beginning of the period of time mentioned, before doing anything else（明天、早上等）头等大事，第一件事◆I always like a cup of tea first thing in the morning. 我早上总是喜欢先喝杯茶。◆Can you lend me some money? I’ll pay you back first thing tomorrow. 你能借我些钱吗？我明天一早就还你。OPPlast thing (at night)●ˌfirst things ˈfirst (oftenhumorous) the most important or necessary duties, matters, etc. must be dealt with before others要紧的事先做◆First things first. We must make sure the electricity is turned off before we start repairing the cooker. 要紧的事要先做。一定要先切断电源再开始修灶具。◆We have a lot to discuss, but, first things first, let’s have a cup of coffee! 我们有很多事情需要讨论，不过事有先后，先让我们喝杯咖啡吧！●(be) the ˈfirst/ˈlast (person) to do sthbe very willing or likely/unwilling or unlikely to do sth（是）最愿意（或最可能）做某事的人；（是）最不愿意（或不可能）做某事的人◆I’d be the first person to admit that I’m not perfect. 我会第一个承认自己不是完人。◆Mary is the last person you’d see in a pub — she hates pubs. 玛丽最不可能去酒吧，她讨厌酒吧。●from the (very) ˈfirstfrom the beginning从一开始◆They were attracted to each other from the first. 他俩一见倾心。●from ˌfirst to ˈlastfrom beginning to end; during the whole time从头到尾；从开始到结束◆It’s a fine performance that commands attention from first to last. 这场演出很精彩，从头到尾都引人入胜。●get to first ˈbase (with sb/sth) ( reach/make first ˈbase (with sb/sth)) (informal, especially NAmE) successfully complete the first stage of sth成功地完成第一阶段；顺利做完第一步◆The project hasn’t even reached first base yet. Why all this delay? 这个项目的第一阶段都还没完成，为什么这么拖拉？NOTE This idiom comes from baseball. First base is the first of four positions (= bases) that a player must reach in order to score points.这个习语源于棒球。first base 指“一垒”。●have first ˈcall (on sb/sth)be the most important person or thing competing for sb’s time, money, etc. and be dealt with or paid for before other people or things需要首先应付的；最需关心的人（或事）◆The children always have first call on her time. 孩子们总是她最放在心上的。●in the ˈfirst instance (formal) as the first part of a series of actions第一步；首先◆In the first instance, notify the police and then contact your insurance company. 首先通知警方，然后同保险公司联系。●in the ˈfirst place1.used at the beginning of a sentence to introduce the different points you are making in an argument（用于句首，引出不同论点）第一◆In the first place it’s not your car, and in the second you’re not old enough to drive it. Is that clear? 首先，这不是你的车；其次，你太小了，还不能开车。你明白了吗？2.used at the end of a sentence to talk about why sth was done or whether it should have been done or not（用于句尾，谈论做某事的原因或必要性）一开始，当初◆I should never have taken that job in the first place. 我当初就不该接受那份工作。●make the first ˈmovedo sth before sb else, for example in order to end an argument or to begin sth先发制人；采取主动◆If he wants to see me, he should make the first move. 如果他想见我的话，他就得主动。●put sb/sth ˈfirsttreat sb/sth as the most important person or thing首先考虑（或处理）…；把…置于首位◆A politician should always put the needs of the country first and not his personal ambitions. 政治家应当总是先考虑国家的需要，而不是他个人的志向。◆He never put his family first. 他从来不把家庭放在首位。●there’s a ˌfirst time for ˈeverything (saying, humorous) the fact that something has not happened before does not mean that it will never happen过去没发生的事并不意味着将来就不会发生；凡事都有第一次◆‘The flood water has never reached the house before.’ ‘Well, there’s a first time for everything.’ “以前洪水从没涨到这座房子这儿。”“呃，什么事情都会有第一次嘛。”●ˌfeet ˈfirst (informal) dead or unconscious死去；失去意识◆If you want me to leave this house, you’ll have to carry me out feet first (= you’ll have to kill me first).你要是想让我离开这所房子，还是先把我杀了吧。●in the first/top ˈflightamong the best of a particular group属于佼佼者；位居前列◆Everybody hopes that the new manager will be able to keep the team in the top flight next year.大家都希望新来的主教练能够让球队明年继续保持领先地位。●ˌhead ˈfirst1.moving forwards or downwards with your head in front of the rest of your body头在前；头朝下◆He fell head first down the stairs.他一头栽下了楼梯。2.without thinking carefully about sth before acting仓促地；鲁莽地◆She got divorced and rushed head first into another marriage.她离婚后又仓促再婚。●see sb in ˈhell first (informal) used to emphasize that you have no intention of agreeing to or doing what sb has suggested（用于强调不同意）决不，死也不◆You want me to invite that woman to this house? I’ll see her in hell first.你想让我请那个女人到这个房子里来？见她个鬼，我才不会呢。●not know the first thing aˈbout sb/sthknow nothing at all about sb/sth对…一无所知；对…一窍不通◆I don’t know the first thing about Chinese history.我对中国历史一窍不通。●ˌlast ˈin, ˌfirst ˈoutused, for example in a situation when people are losing their jobs, to say that the last people to be employed will be the first to go（形容裁员等情况）最后雇用的人最先被解雇，后来者先走●love at first ˈsightfalling in love with sb the first time you meet them一见钟情◆I never really believed in love at first sight until I met my husband.在遇见我丈夫之前，我从不相信一见钟情这种事。●of the highest/first ˈorder●of a high ˈorderof the best, worst, most extreme, etc. type高品质的；一流的；最差的◆It was a scandal of the first order.这是桩特大丑闻。