How to Use first-rate in a Sentence

first-rate

1 of 2 adjective
  • Hiking in this region is first-rate.
    — Chelsee Lowe, Travel + Leisure, 25 May 2026
  • The production design, here and throughout the film, is first-rate.
    — Tom Gliatto, Peoplemag, 8 Mar. 2024
  • Still, Fisher’s instincts and zone awareness are first-rate.
    — Eddie Brown, San Diego Union-Tribune, 18 Apr. 2026
  • Their back-to-back performances promise to be highlights of the year for fans of first-rate singing.
    — George Varga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 14 Aug. 2025
  • Trading for a first-rate goalie isn’t easy in today’s NHL.
    — Daniel Nugent-Bowman, New York Times, 8 Oct. 2025
  • To put it in Gladiator terms, Berman would have made a first-rate jouster.
    — Chris Vognar, Rolling Stone, 30 May 2023
  • Saban has long been recognized as having a first-rate football mind.
    — Brian O'Keefe, Fortune, 11 Jan. 2024
  • That was a stadium that deserves more dramatic nights from its first-rate hometown club.
    — Joseph Goodman | [email protected], al, 8 June 2023
  • Meizhou Dongpo in Arcadia still serves a first-rate Peking duck.
    — Jenn Harris, Los Angeles Times, 8 Jan. 2024
  • Two-, three-, and four-night cruises afford first-rate wildlife watching, as elephants and hippos roam the banks.
    — Heather Richardson, Travel + Leisure, 2 Dec. 2023
  • On the technical side of things, Barry’s costumes are nifty and her sound design first-rate.
    — Matthew J. Palm, The Orlando Sentinel, 18 Jan. 2026
  • Both are driven by commanding performances from first-rate actors in the title roles.
    — David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 15 Mar. 2024
  • The second half of the season, in particular, is loaded with first-rate affairs.
    — Jon Wilner | , oregonlive, 26 Aug. 2023
  • Audi has doubled its sales in recent years with a new generation of first-rate cars that have brought people back to the showrooms.
    — Fred M.h. Gregory, Car and Driver, 12 July 2023
  • The food at each of these places is first-rate, but to save a few bucks and enjoy the passing parade, plunk yourself down in the triangle itself.
    — Chicago Tribune Staff, Chicago Tribune, 2 Aug. 2023
  • There’s no way to revive old forms or to rework old forms, because the artist is never going to understand them well enough to do first-rate work.
    — Anna Kodé, New York Times, 29 Apr. 2024
  • Make the smart decision and get some first-rate pitching as well as a strong group of future stars from another team’s minor league system.
    — Los Angeles Times, 8 July 2023
  • Now, the company is focused on transforming the platform into a first-rate writer.
    — Mike Feibus, USA Today, 4 Oct. 2025
  • That may not sound as far-fetched as some may think, but only a public entity has enough cash to intercede and bring back first-rate care at Vista.
    — Charles Selle, Chicago Tribune, 23 Mar. 2026
  • With sharp writing, a first-rate cast and elegant scenery, who says theater isn’t alive and well in Los Angeles?
    — New York Times, 9 Dec. 2023
  • Work by first-rate artists is displayed or hung in every individual office, every meeting space, even the staff kitchen.
    — Andres Viglucci, Miami Herald, 30 Nov. 2025
  • The cuisine is first-rate, with Chef Roland Lamprecht’s fare drawn from the surrounding forest.
    — Jemima Sissons, Condé Nast Traveler, 9 Apr. 2024
  • In other words there’s plenty to watch over the long holiday weekend — none of it is first-rate, but definitely watchable.
    — Randy Myers, Mercury News, 30 Aug. 2025
  • As for all the creature action, the VFX work here is first-rate as are all the big ass snakes employed to play the real deal.
    — Pete Hammond, Deadline, 23 Dec. 2025
  • Since 1869, The Peabody has been the city’s gathering place as well as a first-rate stay for visitors.
    — Tara Massouleh McCay, Southern Living, 12 Mar. 2026
  • Orion only had to be a decent enough take on a boy overcoming his status as a first-rate scaredy cat and realizing that the world isn’t all worst-case scenarios.
    — David Fear, Rolling Stone, 2 Feb. 2024
  • Our crew pushing bounds and creating set pieces, outfits, hairstyles, and music that were often unexpected and always first-rate.
    — Nardine Saad, Los Angeles Times, 20 Mar. 2024
  • The resort fuses family-friendly with a big focus on wellness and outdoorsy living, and first-rate gastronomy with top-name chefs.
    — Jemima Sissons, Condé Nast Traveler, 22 Jan. 2026
  • Hendersonville also has a first-rate downtown with museums, shops, and restaurants to enliven a weekend trip.
    — Lisa Cericola, Southern Living, 2 Oct. 2025
  • So naturally, shadowing him with a first-rate cornerback like Gonzalez makes sense.
    — Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 8 Feb. 2026

first-rate

2 of 2 adverb
  • His ability to process what a defense is throwing at him is first-rate.
    — Tony Jones, New York Times, 21 July 2026
  • The park has a uniquely strong mix of first-rate roller coasters and family rides; all hits, no misses.
    — Zachary Laks, Travel + Leisure, 22 July 2026
  • The mussels Provençale and the steak tartar are absolutely first-rate.
    — Steve Forbes, Forbes.com, 28 July 2026
  • Belgium is famous for its first-rate beer, frites and seafood — but Cult, one of the city’s newest dining hot spots, bucks the trend.
    — New York Times, 16 July 2026
  • Add in Roger’s jovial friend named McKenna, who owns a bar that’s a den of thieves, and various other colorful characters, and this thrill ride is first-rate entertainment.
    — Monitor Reviewers, Christian Science Monitor, 23 July 2026

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'first-rate.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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