Question

When a dictionary has multiple definitions for the same word, the first definition is_________.

Answer 1

Answer:

The one thing you should remember, however, is that the first sense presented to you is not, as is commonly assumed, the most 'important,' or 'correct' meaning. Some senses may be archaic, slang, or rare, but none are better than the others.

Dictionaries differ in how they define a word for several reasons. One is that the language is so broad, an explanation of a word's meaning can be made in multiple different ways. A definition may be verbose or terse, depending on how the lexicographer approaches the task of explaining the meaning.