INITIAL

Initial

In a written or published work, an initial is a letter at the beginning of a word, a chapter, or a paragraph that is larger than the rest of the text. The word is derived from the Latin initialis, which means standing at the beginning. An initial often is several lines in height and in older books or manuscripts, sometimes ornately decorated.

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initial

Noun

  1. The first letter of a word or a name.
  2. In plural, the first letter of each word of a person's full name considered as a unit
    You can get your initials printed at the top.
  3. A distinguished initial letter of a chapter or section of a document.
  4. onset, part of a syllable that precedes the syllable nucleus in phonetics and phonology.

Verb

  1. To sign one's initial(s), as an abbreviated signature.
    Please initial each page and sign the contract in full at the bottom.

Adjective

  1. Chronologically first, early; of or pertaining to the beginning, cause or origin.
  2. Spatially first, placed at the beginning, in the first position; especially said of the first letter of a word.


The above text is a snippet from Wiktionary: initial
and as such is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

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