in the first place
At the outset
In the first place introduces the primary reason or initial point in an argument: Why did you agree to it in the first place?
It often implies that something should have been considered earlier, or that a later development contradicts an original premise: If you didn't want to go, you shouldn't have said yes in the first place.
In formal enumeration, it simply marks the first item in a series.
- startTo set going
- launchSet into motion
- openingGap or start
- beginningInitial stage of something
- causeWhat produces an effect
commencement · day one · outset · precedence · originally · inception · front · initially · primary · from the start · right off the bat · rationale · reason · justification · why · to start with · argument · chiefly
- beginning phrasesonce upon a time, in the beginning, to start with, to begin with, for starters
in the first placelastly
At the end
finally · in conclusion · to conclude · in the end · ultimately
in the first placeultimately
In the end
in the end · in hindsight · in retrospect · after all · when all is said and done
in the first placein the end
After all is considered
at the end · finally · at last · ultimately · eventually