What does "foremost" mean?
Positioned in front of (all) others in space, most forward.
Foremost
/ˈfɔː.məʊst/ adj, adv, name
adj, adv, name ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: Positioned in front of (all) others in space, most forward.
- Grammar: foremost is listed as adj, adv, name.
- Nearest alternatives: frontmost, advance, ahead, all-absorbing.
- Useful contrasts: back, backmost, hind.
- Usage evidence: I told it to my mother first and foremost.
How to use "foremost"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "foremost" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "foremost" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "foremost" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "foremost" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "foremost" is acting as adj, adv, name in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "frontmost" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "foremost", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Adjective
- 1 Positioned in front of (all) others in space, most forward. not-comparable
"She prankes not by hir mistresse side, she preases not to bée / The foremost of the companie, as when she erst was frée."
- 2 Coming before (all) others in time. not-comparable
"[…] of both them, she / (By Pallas counsell) was to haue the grace / Of foremost greeting."
- 3 Of the highest rank or position; of the greatest importance; of the highest priority. not-comparable
"The exhibition features works by the country’s foremost artists."
- 4 Closest to the bow. not-comparable
"I let fall the tiller, turned my back on them, and sat down on the foremost thwart."
Adjective
- 1 preceding all others in spatial position wordnet
- 2 ranking above all others wordnet
- 3 situated closest to the bow wordnet
Adverb
- 1 In front, prominently forward. not-comparable
"No Man hath more nicely observed our Climate, than the Bookseller who bought the Copy of this Work; He knows to a Tittle what Subjects will best go off in a dry Year, and which it is proper to expose foremost, when the Weather-glass is fallen to much Rain."
- 2 First in time. not-comparable
"c. 1618, Philip Massinger, Thomas Middleton and William Rowley, The Old Law, London: Edward Archer, 1656, Act III, Scene 1, p. 41, Alwayes the worst goes foremost, so twill prove I hope"
- 3 Most importantly. not-comparable
"[…] Mrs. Nickleby, with the utmost sincerity, gave vent to her sorrows after her own peculiar fashion of considering herself foremost,"
Adverb
- 1 before anything else wordnet
- 2 prominently forward wordnet
Proper Noun
- 1 A village in Alberta, Canada.
Antonyms
Example
"I told it to my mother first and foremost."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "foremost"?
Common synonyms include: frontmost, advance, ahead, all-absorbing, alpha, antecedent.
How do you use "foremost" in a sentence?
I told it to my mother first and foremost.
How do you pronounce "foremost"?
Pronounced /ˈfɔː.məʊst/.
Etymology
From Old English formest, fyrmest (“earliest, first, most prominent”), from Proto-Germanic *frumistaz, from the locative stem *fur-, *fr- + the superlative suffix *-umistaz, stem ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *pr-. The suffix *-umistaz was a compound suffix, created from the rarer comparative suffix *-umô (as in Old English fruma) + the regular superlative suffix *-istaz (English -est); *-umô in turn is from Proto-Indo-European *-mHo-. Cognate with Old Frisian formest, Gothic 𐍆𐍂𐌿𐌼𐌹𐍃𐍄𐍃 (frumists). See for, first and Old English fruma for more. Partially cognate to primus, from Proto-Indo-European *pr- + Latin superlative suffix -imus, from Proto-Indo-European *-mHo-. A comparative former was back-formed analogically, leaving the m from *-umô in place. Later the Old English suffix complex -(u)m-est was conflated with the word most through folk etymology, so that the word is now interpreted as fore + -most.