first and foremost
adv1
Primarily; most importantly.
- "There are many things to be considered before that question can be answered properly," I said, sententiously. "First and foremost, do you love Mr. Edgar?"1847 December, Ellis Bell [pseudonym; Emily Brontë], Wuthering Heights: […], volume (please specify |volume=I or II), London: Thomas Cautley Newby, […], →OCLC:
- First and foremost, there is currently lacking any single text which comes close to cataloguing the great variety of terms in use.2018, James Lambert, “A multitude of ‘lishes’: The nomenclature of hybridity”, in English World-Wide, page 2:
2 more examples
- By addressing these questions, we hope, first and foremost, to learn more about the generally under-studied topic of Esperanto communication and, secondly, to contribute to research that goes beyond Esperanto and can have an impact on the work of researchers in other (linguistic) disciplines.2022, Sabine Fiedler, Cyril Robert Brosch, “The aim of this book” (chapter 4), in Esperanto – Lingua Franca and Language Community, John Benjamins Publishing Company, →DOI, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OL, page 20:
- That progress has taken over ten years and £20 million to bring to fruition. But, as Mands explains, the journey has been one that HSG has been almost obligated to undertake. "First and foremost, this is an environmental project," she says.2023 December 27, Richard Foster, “New rail freight terminal leads the way”, in RAIL, number 999, page 39:
- Synonyms
- above all