in the first instance
idiom
formal
: before other events happen : as the first thing in a series of actions
You will be seen in the first instance by your own doctor who may then send you to a specialist.
Examples of in the first instance in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
States are allowed in the first instance to set the time, place and manner of elections subject only to congressional override.
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Dana Taylor, USA TODAY, 31 Mar. 2024
Throughout, Klinenberg’s mixture of closeup witness and broad-view sociology is engrossing, and reminds this reader of the late Howard S. Becker’s insistence that the best sociology is always, in the first instance, wide-angle reporting.
—Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 19 Feb. 2024
The designer wants to use AI technology to design swimwear in the first instance.
—Marc Bain, CNN, 6 Feb. 2024
Resolution of whether [Section] 2 affords private plaintiffs the ability to challenge state action is best left to the Supreme Court in the first instance.
—Oren Oppenheim, ABC News, 20 Nov. 2023
In other words, though the language seems to be incredibly capacious, there has been an effort by—in the first instance the Supreme Court, in the second instance the lower courts—to really prevent the use of this statute in ways that are divorced from prior uses.
—Isaac Chotiner, The New Yorker, 25 July 2023
Capitalism, as Peter Drucker remarked in 1954, is in the first instance about creating value for customers.
—Steve Denning, Forbes, 28 Apr. 2021
Why did Harris decide to engage in such self-flagellation in the first instance?
—Charles C. W. Cooke, National Review, 17 Feb. 2022
However, social pressure is still present — family and friends often discourage women from divorcing and Chinese courts tend to rule against divorce in the first instance, in order to maintain social stability.
—NBC News, 27 Mar. 2021
Dana Taylor, USA TODAY, 31 Mar. 2024
Throughout, Klinenberg’s mixture of closeup witness and broad-view sociology is engrossing, and reminds this reader of the late Howard S. Becker’s insistence that the best sociology is always, in the first instance, wide-angle reporting.
—Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 19 Feb. 2024
The designer wants to use AI technology to design swimwear in the first instance.
—Marc Bain, CNN, 6 Feb. 2024
Resolution of whether [Section] 2 affords private plaintiffs the ability to challenge state action is best left to the Supreme Court in the first instance.
—Oren Oppenheim, ABC News, 20 Nov. 2023
In other words, though the language seems to be incredibly capacious, there has been an effort by—in the first instance the Supreme Court, in the second instance the lower courts—to really prevent the use of this statute in ways that are divorced from prior uses.
—Isaac Chotiner, The New Yorker, 25 July 2023
Capitalism, as Peter Drucker remarked in 1954, is in the first instance about creating value for customers.
—Steve Denning, Forbes, 28 Apr. 2021
Why did Harris decide to engage in such self-flagellation in the first instance?
—Charles C. W. Cooke, National Review, 17 Feb. 2022
However, social pressure is still present — family and friends often discourage women from divorcing and Chinese courts tend to rule against divorce in the first instance, in order to maintain social stability.
—NBC News, 27 Mar. 2021
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'in the first instance.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near in the first instance
Cite this Entry
“In the first instance.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/in%20the%20first%20instance. Accessed 25 Apr. 2024.
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