initially
adverb
ini·tial·ly
i-ˈni-sh(ə-)lē 
: at the beginning : at first
The reason I initially came here was to find work.
It turned out that the situation was not as serious as we had initially believed.
Initially, the symptoms are mild.
Examples of initially in a Sentence
we initially intended to rebuild our hurricane-damaged home from the ground up
Recent Examples on the Web
Orbán had vetoed the bill after initially agreeing to it, enraging EU officials and counterparts across the 27-nation bloc.
—
ABC News, 17 Apr. 2026
What initially felt like a meteoric rise tapered off into a slow burn.
—Vince Aletti, New Yorker, 17 Apr. 2026
The next pitch was initially called a ball.
—Lamond Pope, Chicago Tribune, 17 Apr. 2026
He was initially arrested on three felony charges, including false imprisonment, but the Los Angeles District Attorney’s office ultimately declined to pursue those charges, PEOPLE reported at the time.
—Madison E. Goldberg, PEOPLE, 17 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for initially
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ABC News, 17 Apr. 2026
What initially felt like a meteoric rise tapered off into a slow burn.
—Vince Aletti, New Yorker, 17 Apr. 2026
The next pitch was initially called a ball.
—Lamond Pope, Chicago Tribune, 17 Apr. 2026
He was initially arrested on three felony charges, including false imprisonment, but the Los Angeles District Attorney’s office ultimately declined to pursue those charges, PEOPLE reported at the time.
—Madison E. Goldberg, PEOPLE, 17 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for initially
Cite this Entry
“Initially.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/initially. Accessed 19 Apr. 2026.
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