to begin with
Related to to begin with: ditsy, insightful, get the ball rolling
to begin with
1. From the outset; initially; in or at the very beginning. I never would have bought this car to begin with if I'd known there weren't airbags. You should have said you were feeling ill to begin with! I wouldn't have given you such a hard time if I'd known.
2. As the first of a given set of points (e.g., in an argument). Why am I quitting? Well, to begin with, I haven't been paid for overtime in nearly a year, and I just don't feel valued as an employee in general. There are a lot of problems with your paper. To begin with, you just seem to move from point to point at random.
See also: begin
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.
to beˈgin with
1 at first: I found it tiring to begin with but I soon got used to it. We’ll go slowly to begin with.
2 used to introduce the first point you want to make: ‘What was it you didn’t like?’ ‘Well, to begin with, our room was far too small.’
See also: begin
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary
- to start with
- from the outset
- at the outset
- at/from the outset
- outset
- in the first place
- out of the chute
- off to a flying start
- flying start
- a flying start