at the first sign
Definition of at the first sign
: as soon as something happens that indicates an action or event has begun to take place The bartender called the police at the first sign of trouble. At the first sign of spring she planted annuals in her flower beds.
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Word by Word Definitions
: preceding all others in time, order, or importance: such as
: earliest
: being the lowest forward gear or speed of a motor vehicle
: before another in time, space, or importance
: for the first time
: in preference to something else : sooner
: something that is first: such as
: the first occurrence or item of a kind
: the first forward gear or speed of a motor vehicle
: a motion or gesture by which a thought is expressed or a command or wish made known
: signal
: a fundamental linguistic unit that designates an object or relation or has a purely syntactic function
: cross
: to place a sign on or mark by signs
: to represent or indicate by a sign
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