Meanings
verbblink first (third-person singular simple present blinks first, present participle blinking first, simple past and past participle blinked first)
present singular third person blinks first · participle present blinking first · participle past blinked first · past blinked first
- idiomaticTo be the first party in some situation to give in or back down.
The future of these valuable vehicles depends on who blinks first in the stand-off between a ROSCO wanting to maximise the return on its investment and the determination of DfT to reduce operating costs.
2023 June 28, Ben Jones, “Are we getting rid of our (still useful) rolling stock too early?”, in RAIL, number 986, page 29
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with blink first
All rhymes →Cite this entry
APA
blink first. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/blink%20first
MLA
“blink first.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/blink%20first. Accessed November 4, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “blink first,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/blink%20first.
Source: blink first on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.