Meaning of initial in English | Powered by Free Dictionary API

noun

• The first letter of a word or a name.

• In plural, the first letter of each word of a person's full name considered as a unit.

  Example: You can get your initials printed at the top.

• A distinguished initial letter of a chapter or section of a document.

• Onset, part of a syllable that precedes the syllable nucleus in phonetics and phonology.

verb

• To sign one's initial(s), as an abbreviated signature.

  Example: Please initial each page and sign the contract in full at the bottom.

adjective

• Chronologically first, early; of or pertaining to the beginning, cause or origin.

  Example: Our initial admiration for their efficiency gave way to disgust about their methods.

• Spatially first, placed at the beginning, in the first position; especially said of the first letter of a word.

  Example: The initial letter of names is usually printed with a capital letter.