first come, first served

Those who are first to arrive will be the first to be waited on.

Discover More

Idioms and Phrases

Those who precede others will have their needs attended to earliest, as in So many people showed up that we may not have enough food to go around, so let it be “first come, first served .” The idea is very old, but the first recorded use of this precise phrase was in 1545. Also see early bird catches the worm .

Discover More

Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

The airline announced last summer that it would do away with its open seating policy, a decades-long practice that allowed customers to select seats on a first come, first served basis.

From

Letting agent Finders Keepers said it was "launching" its student accommodation at 09:00 GMT on Tuesday, with applications accepted on a "first come, first served" basis.

From

"When we went to apply for a viewing for the house it said 'you need to come to our doors at 9am on Tuesday... it's first come first served'," she said.

From

Tickets are not guaranteed and will be on a first come, first served basis with high demand expected.

From

There are also guided dam tours available, first come, first served.

From

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

first-come firstcomer

Browse