first responder

noun

: a person (such as a police officer or an EMT) who is among those responsible for going immediately to the scene of an accident or emergency to provide assistance

Examples of first responder in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Witnesses of the crash attempted to resuscitate Kroshunov at the scene of the crash, but he was later pronounced dead when brought to a hospital by first responders. —Anders Hagstrom, FOXNews.com, 29 Jan. 2026

Some first responders carried residents to safety on their shoulders, authorities said at the time. —Thao Nguyen, USA Today, 29 Jan. 2026

Seagoville first responders and a tow truck driver saved a 39-year-old man from drowning in a drainage culvert during the winter storm Tuesday afternoon, police said in a statement Thursday. —Elissa Jorgensen, Dallas Morning News, 29 Jan. 2026

According to The War Zone, additional footage also shows the pilot exiting the aircraft with assistance from first responders after the aircraft came to a stop. —Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 28 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1970, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for first responder

• condor
• fonder
• launder
• mandir
• maunder
• ponder
• squander
• wander
• yonder
• transponder

Kids Definition

first responder

noun

first re·​spond·​er

-ri-ˈspän-dər

: a person (as a police officer or an EMT) who is among those responsible for going immediately to the scene of an accident or emergency to provide assistance