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

Brussels said the fee offered earlier this year "at first sight" was "in practice equivalent to the previous access ban".

From Barron's • Jun. 9, 2026

Climber Chris Thrall said that at first, it was impossible to believe Sherpa had survived against the odds.

From BBC • Jun. 5, 2026

“Where it got a little tough for us is they asked for Jared Verse in return,” Snead said, “and similar to what Cleveland did at first, we were a ‘no.’”

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 2, 2026

I could see it was still snowing outside, but at first I could see very little else.

From "An Elephant in the Garden" by Michael Morpurgo