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
In the presidential race, Kennedy initially had sought the Democratic nomination, then ran as an independent.
—
Seth Klamann, The Denver Post, 15 Nov. 2024
The team initially studied pheasants’ wings and flapping patterns to engineer a realistic drone that, when paired with a real taxidermied pheasant head and wings, could blend in naturally with live pheasants for less invasive wildlife monitoring.
—Alice Jones Webb, Outdoor Life, 14 Nov. 2024
The fourth misfire was initially ruled a fumble that led to a Titans touchdown, but it was later overturned by video replay and ruled an incomplete pass.
—Elliott Teaford, Orange County Register, 10 Nov. 2024
But after initially ruling the goal to be good, on-ice officials determined that Zetterlund illegally contacted Allen’s pad before the goal.
—Curtis Pashelka, The Mercury News, 10 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for initially 
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.
Seth Klamann, The Denver Post, 15 Nov. 2024
The team initially studied pheasants’ wings and flapping patterns to engineer a realistic drone that, when paired with a real taxidermied pheasant head and wings, could blend in naturally with live pheasants for less invasive wildlife monitoring.
—Alice Jones Webb, Outdoor Life, 14 Nov. 2024
The fourth misfire was initially ruled a fumble that led to a Titans touchdown, but it was later overturned by video replay and ruled an incomplete pass.
—Elliott Teaford, Orange County Register, 10 Nov. 2024
But after initially ruling the goal to be good, on-ice officials determined that Zetterlund illegally contacted Allen’s pad before the goal.
—Curtis Pashelka, The Mercury News, 10 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for initially
Dictionary Entries Near initially
Cite this Entry
“Initially.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/initially. Accessed 21 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share