number onen.adj.
/ˌnʌmbə ˈwʌn/, U.S. /ˌnəmbər ˈwən/ A. n.
1. Oneself, one's own person and interests; esp. in to look after (also look out for, take care of) number one. Cf. one n. 1d.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > kind or sort > individual character or quality > [noun] > individuality or selfhood > self > oneself or own interest
onea1566
number one1705
1705 T. Pitt Let. 23 Feb. in W. Hedges Diary (1889) III. p. xcix The Knight I doubt not, but 'tis very careful of number one, and looks no further.
?1791 J. Bentham Corr. (1981) IV. 256 It concerns me to take care of number one, and not get into any more scrapes.
1830 J. Galt Lawrie Todd I. iii. ix. 244 He had an eye awake to number one.
1850 W. M. Thackeray Pendennis II. xviii. 176 Almost every person,..as it seems to us, is occupied about Number One.
1881 H. James Portrait of Lady II. i. 5 He is not in the least addicted to looking after number one.
1922 C. E. Montague Disenchantment (1924) iii. 48 A man was a fool if he imagined that anyone set over him was not looking after number one.
1959 L. Eby & J. Fleming Death Begs Question iii. 51 A hundred and fifty years of freedom has built up responsibility in these guys all right—the responsibility of looking after number one.
1991 Daughters of Sarah May 23/2 The career world values aggressiveness, looking out for Number One.
2. A person or thing of the first importance or the highest quality; the finest example of a person or thing.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > goodness and badness > quality of being good > quality of being the best > [noun] > best thing or person
highesteOE
bestOE
greatest?c1225
pridec1330
crestc1400
primrosea1450
outrepass1477
A per sea1500
primrose peerless1523
prisec1540
prime1579
surquidry1607
excellency1611
nonsuchc1613
crown jewel1646
top1665
patriarch1700
pièce de résistance1793
number one1825
business1868
resistance piece1870
star1882
mostest1889
koh-i-noor1892
best-ever1905
flagship1933
the end1950
endsville1957
Big Mac1969
mack daddy1993
1825 Blackwood's Edinb. Mag. 18 44/1 ‘I say, Miny, come hither, my number one,’ continued he, in a confidential tone, ‘I want to speak with you.’
1846 ‘Lord Chief Baron’ Swell's Night Guide (new ed.) 40 This sanctum-sanctorum is..the number one of cribberies.
1904 G. B. Shaw Let. 9 Sept. in E. Terry & G. B. Shaw Corr. (1931) 414 The tour is on the cheapest scale..and the towns by no means all Number Ones.
1974 E. Bowen Henry & Other Heroes iv. 69 She figured the only way to be number one in her own field..was to beat the socks off the male biographers.
1996 M. Burgess Junk (1997) ii. 8 ‘You're still my number one, Daddy,’ I told him.
3. euphemistic and nursery. An act of urination; urine. Also in plural in same sense.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > the body > organs of excretion > excretions > urine > [noun]
migeOE
addleOE
lantc1000
urinec1325
pissa1387
stalea1400
watera1400
stalingc1420
lage1567
urine-river1633
emiction1666
sig1691
tea1693
piddle1870
number one1902
pee-wee1909
pee-pee1923
widdle1925
wee-wee1937
pee1957
wee1968
1902 J. S. Farmer & W. E. Henley Slang V. 75/2 Number one,..(nursery). Urination; also a chamber-pot.
1923 J. Manchon Le Slang 212 I want to do number one, je veux faire pipi.
1963 G. Greene Sense of Reality 47 ‘I want to do number one.’ I blurted out... He called to Maria, ‘The boy wants to piss. Fetch him the golden po.’
1996 G. Linehan & A. Mathews in Father Ted (1999) 174/1 I really need to go to the toilet... It's just number ones.
4. Originally British Navy. A first lieutenant, esp. one who is second in command to a ship's captain. Frequently as a form of address.
ΘΚΠ
society > armed hostility > hostilities at sea > seafaring warrior or naval man > leader or commander > [noun] > naval officer > lieutenant > first lieutenant
first lieutenant1697
first luff1821
number one1909
Jimmy1916
No. 11916
1909 J. R. Ware Passing Eng. Victorian Era 184/2 Number one.., strictly naval for first lieutenant.
1916 ‘Taffrail’ Stand By! 120 ‘I'm sorry for him,’ said No. One, lifting his glass with a grin.
1955 A. MacLean H.M.S. Ulysses i. 32 Captain here, Number One.
1999 8 Days 4 Dec. 40/3 Cmdr William Riker..Picard's ‘Number One’..has a thing for the sexy counsellor.
5. Originally British Navy. A best dress uniform. Usually in plural.
ΘΚΠ
the world > textiles and clothing > clothing > types or styles of clothing > [noun] > for specific people > for members of a body or association > best dress uniform
number one1914
No. 11950
1914 ‘Bartimeus’ Naval Occasions xviii. 157 The ‘Rig of the Day’ was ‘Number Ones’.
1947 Landfall 1 287 Hughes unpacked his kit to find his number ones badly crushed, and cursing, he went in search of an iron.
1972 Police Rev. 17 Nov. 1489/2 (caption) Probably the last Policemen ever to wear their ‘number ones’, the ceremonial dress of the Force which is probably being phased out at the end of the year.
1990 C. Allen Savage Wars of Peace (1991) p. xix The Private..was seen on television scrambling in dark green Number Ones over the rubble in the aftermath of the Enniskillen Remembrance Day bomb.
6.
a. The position at the top of a music chart; (hence also) the top-selling position in a book list, film chart, etc.
ΚΠ
1962 Melody Maker 13 Jan. 3/3 (advt.) Number 1 in the Charts! Over half-a-million records sold by day of issue!]
1963 Beatles Bk. Aug. 17/2 Ever since the first week of April 1963 the Number One spot on the hit parade has been held by groups which are managed by Brian Epstein.
1968 Melody Maker 20 Jan. 1/2 Georgie Fame shot his way to number one this week with ‘The Ballad of Bonnie And Clyde’.
1976 Weekend Echo (Liverpool) 4 Dec. 3/4 It's nice to say ‘I've been to number one’ but it's nothing much more than that.
1985 J. Sullivan Only Fools & Horses (1999) I. 4th Ser. Episode 4. 232/2 They could go to number one! They could have a smash hit on their hands.
1995 Empire May 98/1 In February 1994 it shot straight to number one at the US box office.
b. A best-selling record, CD, book, etc.
ΘΚΠ
society > trade and finance > merchandise > [noun] > best-selling goods
bestseller1864
million seller1969
number one1989
1989 C. S. Murray Crosstown Traffic vii. 156 Englebert Humperdinck's ‘Release Me’ (the most hated and despised British Number One single of 1967).
1992 New Musical Express (BNC) 10 Oct. 16-track compilation featuring their five Number Ones, and two previously unreleased tracks.
2001 Heat 17 Nov. 86/1 The wholesome Irish chaps who have eight Number Ones under their belts.
B. adj. (chiefly attributive).
colloquial. Leading, principal; excellent, first-rate; best-selling.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > goodness and badness > quality of being good > excellence > [adjective] > very excellent or first-rate
gildenc1225
prime1402
rare1483
grand1542
holy1599
pre-excelling1600
paregal1602
classic1604
of (the) first rate1650
solary1651
first rate1674
superb1720
tip-top1722
tip-top-gallant1730
swell1819
topping1822
of the first (also finest, best, etc.) water1826
No. 11829
brag1836
A11837
A No. 11838
number one1839
awful1843
bully1851
first class1852
class1867
champion1880
too1881
tipping1887
alpha plus1898
bonzer1898
grade A1911
gold star1917
world-ranking1921
five-star1936
too much1937
first line1938
vintage1939
supercolossal1947
top1953
alpha1958
fantabulous1959
beauty1963
supercool1965
world-class1967
primo1973
1839 Spirit of Times 29 June 195/1 He is the sole owner of the estate upon which the [race] track is located, and will, no doubt, do all he can to make it ‘a number one’ concern.
1871 E. Eggleston Hoosier School-master xv. 125 Seems to me it would be number one to have God help you.
1894 R. Kipling Jungle Bk. 191 ‘I've a very great mind to give you a number one kicking,’ said [the old mule].
1906 J. London White Fang iv. 241 You may be a number one, tip-top minin' expert..but you missed the chance of your life when you was a boy an' didn't run off an' join a circus.
1971 Flying Apr. S7/1 Pilot briefing is the number-one item in the present FSS system.
1990 Punch 13 July 25/2 ‘Like a Virgin’ was another Number One smasheroonie from the golden age of pop.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2003; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
> as lemmas
number one
b. Prefixed to a series of numerals in recounting a sequence of arguments, instructions, etc.; number one: firstly, most importantly, for a start.
ΚΠ
1871 ‘L. Carroll’ Through Looking-glass i. 4 I'm going to tell you all your faults. Number one: you squeaked twice when Dinah was washing your face this morning... Number two: you pulled Snowdrop away by the tail.
1984 J. Didion Democracy (1985) v. 86 Don't ask, number one, how Wendell Omura happens to be on Janet's lanai.
1997 ‘Q’ Deadmeat 385 That is real dangerous, because number one, they can build up the children's confidence over time, groom them, number two, the child will never suspect they are in danger.
number one
c. Originally Military. Prefixed to a numeral, as number one, number two, etc., designating progressively longer haircuts.
ΚΠ
1925 E. Fraser & J. Gibbons Soldier & Sailor Words 211 At an inspection, for instance, an officer would tell a man, whose hair seemed too long, to ‘Get a Number One before next Parade’.
1982 N. Knight Skinhead 20 The hairstyle would be a number two or three crop with feathered fringes all round.
1991 A. Beevor Inside Brit. Army (rev. ed.) Gloss. 504 Number three haircut, standard haircut, as opposed to a Number one, which is shearing ‘right down to the wood’.
<
n.adj.1705as lemmas