in the first place
Definition of in the first place
1 —used at the end of a sentence to indicate what was true or what should have been done at the beginning of a situation We should never have gone there in the first place. I didn't care much for the job in the first place.
2 —used when listing the most important parts of something or the most important reasons for something I'm not going to tell you because, in the first place, it's none of your business, and in the second place, you would tell everyone else.
From the M-W Editors
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
: physical environment : space
: a way for admission or transit
: physical surroundings : atmosphere
: to put in or as if in a particular place or position : set
: to present for consideration
: to put in a particular state
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