linking phrase · neutral
at first
UK/ət ˈfɜːst/US/ət ˈfɝːst/at·FIRST
speakingtask2
at the beginning; initially
Examples
“At first I didn’t like the city, but I grew to enjoy it.”
“At first, the job looked easy; later it became very demanding.”
“At first I thought the question was unfair, but then I understood the point.”
Band 8 sentence
“At first I underestimated how much adaptation would be required, but within a few months I adjusted my routine completely.”
Collocations
- at first glance
- at first sight
- at first I thought...
Word family
first adj/adv/ninitial/initially adj/adv
Common mistakes
First I think he is shy.→At first I thought he was shy.
Say it for a higher band
5then→6next→7+at first
Synonyms
initially
in the beginning
Easily confused
initially
“Initially, the new policy seemed problematic.”
Related words
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In Sequence
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