Foremost Definition

fôrmōst
adjective
More prominent or important than others, especially in position or rank.
The foremost researchers in the field.
American Heritage
First in place or time.
Webster's New World
First in rank or importance; leading.
Webster's New World

(nautical) Closest to the bow.

Wiktionary
adverb
Before all else; first.
Webster's New World
In the front or first position.
Kept the idea foremost in her mind.
American Heritage
Wiktionary
Wiktionary

Origin of Foremost

  • From Old English formest, fyrmest (“earliest, first, most prominent”), from Proto-Germanic *frumistaz, from the locative stem *fur-, fr- + the superlative suffix *-umistaz. 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). Cognate with Old Frisian formest, Gothic (frumists). See for, first and Old English fruma for more.

    From Wiktionary

  • The Old English suffix -mest was eventually conflated with the word most through folk etymology, so that it is now interpreted as fore +‎ -most; former was back-formed analogically.

    From Wiktionary

  • Alteration of Middle English formest first from Old English per1 in Indo-European roots

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

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