first edition

noun

: the copies of a literary work first printed from the same type and issued at the same time

also : a single copy from a first edition

Examples of first edition in a Sentence

There were many errors in the book's first edition.

She owns a valuable first edition of Huckleberry Finn.

Recent Examples on the Web

The book sent to Booklegger was a first edition published in 1953. — Daniella Segura, USA Today, 6 Aug. 2026

Following the first edition in 2025, the upcoming edition of the biennal will be led by Juan Ricardo Rincón Gaviria as director, supported by chief curators Magalí Arriola and José Esparza Chong Cuy. — News Desk, Artforum, 3 Aug. 2026

Along the narrow hallway, bookshelves burst with first editions of John Updike, battered Stephen Kings, graphic novels, dime-store paperbacks, board games, books about mythology, children’s fairy tales, and Warhammer rule sets. — Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 29 July 2026

Marilyn Monroe was on the cover of the first edition of Playboy in 1953. — Michael Goldstein, Forbes.com, 29 July 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1542, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for first edition

• abolition
• acquisition
• admonition
• ammunition
• apparition
• apposition
• coalition
• competition
• composition
• definition
• deglutition
• demolition