as in first
coming before all others in time or order
the earliest computers were massive machines that practically filled up a room
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for earliest
Adjective
-
After drawing 1-1 with Manchester United at the beginning of the month, dropping points for the first time in the Women’s Super League (WSL) this season, Chelsea needed a penalty to equalise and finish with the same result away against FC Twente of the Vrouwen Eredivisie.—
Cerys Jones,
New York Times,
16 Oct. 2025 -
Friday’s press conference before Game 1 of the finals marked Engelbert’s first public comments since her stewardship came under fire from some of the league’s biggest stars earlier this week.—
Kevin Dotson,
CNN Money,
4 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Anyone who loses will receive five bonus bets that add up to the initial stake.—
Tyler Everett,
MSNBC Newsweek,
19 Oct. 2025
-
Calderhead focuses on the British tactic, enacted two days after the initial attack, of moving their fleet into Flushing Bay to anchor for the night.—
JSTOR Daily,
JSTOR Daily,
18 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
One disc contains outtakes from the original 4-track demos, made by Springsteen in his house in Colts Head, NJ, with extras from a follow-up acoustic studio session at The Power Station that tried, and failed, to better those recordings.—
Will Hermes,
Rolling Stone,
19 Oct. 2025
-
Founded in 1962, the museum highlights 200 years of canal history through interactive exhibits, original artifacts, and engaging programs that explore how this engineering marvel shaped New York’s communities and culture, past and present.—
Lauren Dana Ellman,
Travel + Leisure,
19 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
The 2019 Nationals aren’t even the foremost road warriors of the last few years.—
Tyler Kepner,
New York Times,
16 Oct. 2025
-
Olivier Wenden is Vice Chairman & CEO, Fondation Prince Albert II de Monaco, one of the world’s foremost philanthropic institutions dedicated to environmental conservation.—
Olivier Wenden,
Fortune,
14 Oct. 2025
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Cite this Entry
“Earliest.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/earliest. Accessed 22 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share