What is the difference between 'fist' and 'first'?

The words fist and first are often confused because they look similar. Do you know the difference?

First means preceding all others of a series or kind; the ordinal of one; earliest when used as an adjective.

Fist means hand with the fingers clenched or curled inward when used as a noun.

A good way to remember the difference is First has an R.

Out of the two words, 'first' is the most common. It appears about 178 times more frequently than 'fist'.

It's easy to mix up words that have similar spellings like fist and first.

First is an adjective. It is the ordinal form of number one. It means "preceding all others, primary, or earliest."

Fist is a noun that means "the hand when the fingers are clenched or curled inward." It can also be a verb that means "to grab something with a fist."

Is it 'an iron first' or 'an iron fist'?

The correct expresssion is 'an iron fist.' These phrases are often confused because they are spelled similarly.

Should I use 'first things first' or 'fist things fist'?

The correct expression is 'first things first'. These phrases are often confused because they are easy to mistype.

Some synonyms of fist are: paw, clutch, clench fist, hand, hold.

Some synonyms of first are: front, primary, earliest, one.

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The definitions in this article were adapted from Wiktionary.