at first

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

"This will prevent serious and irreparable harm to competition in this growing market by Meta's conduct, which at first sight infringes EU competition rules," the commission said.

From Barron's • Jun. 9, 2026

Avid AI users won’t be terribly impressed at first.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 9, 2026

What distinguished Didion is her style, so carefully milled as to be not noticed at first.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 8, 2026

It meant that, at first, Kym was not alarmed when she lost contact with her husband.

From BBC • Jun. 4, 2026

Okay, that was improbable, seeing as he hadn’t even realized who I was at first, but one could never be too careful when it came to Rachel’s machinations.

From "Bye Forever, I Guess" by Jodi Meadows