English Reference
Idiom idiom

the first thing I did


you use this to talk about the very first action you took in a sequence of events.


SIMPLE

“The first thing I did was turn on the lights.”

CONTEXTUAL

“When I arrived at the hotel, the first thing I did was check the view from my balcony.”

COMPLEX

“Upon discovering the error in the financial report, the first thing I did was contact the department head to initiate an immediate review of the data.”

Last updated April 22, 2026