# initial

/ˌɪˈnɪʃəɫ/ (US) · /ɪnˈɪʃəl/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/initial
Updated: 2026-06-19

## Senses

### 1. first or beginning

adjective · CEFR B1 · General-service

happening at the very beginning of a process or situation.

For teachers: occurring at the beginning; relating to the first stage of a process.

- My initial reaction to the news was surprise, but then I felt happy.
- The initial phase of the project focused on gathering data before any strategic decisions were made by the board.

### 2. first letter of a name

noun · CEFR B1

the first letter of a person's name.

For teachers: the first letter of a word or a name, typically used in the plural to refer to the first letters of all a person's names.

- He has his initials, J.B., sewn onto his travel bag.
- The silver locket was engraved with the initials of her great-grandmother, though the metal had tarnished over the decades.

### 3. to sign with initials

verb · CEFR B2 · Formal

to write the first letters of your name on a document to show you agree.

For teachers: to mark or sign a document with one's initials, often as a preliminary or informal signature. Transitive use requiring a direct object.

- Please initial each page of the contract at the bottom.
- The legal assistant requested that the client initial every amendment to ensure the changes were officially acknowledged before filing.

## Examples

- Please write your initials at the bottom of each page.
- The artist signed the corner of the painting with her initials instead of her full name.
- Legal contracts often require the signatory to place their initials on every page to ensure that no unauthorized substitutions have been made to the document's interior clauses.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.