Adverb or adjective

[anusuthakaran]

Is the word 'First' an adjective or an adverb.

Consider the examples:

1) It was his first victory.
2) The show was first aired on BBC.

'aired' is a participle. If 'first' is an adjective then how can an adjective modify another adjective(participle).

Is there a difference between
'The show was first aired on BBC.'
and
'The show was aired first on BBC.'

[JonathanSchneider]

The word "first" can be EITHER an adjective or an adverb.

There IS a difference.

"aired first" = first in line that night
"first aired" = aired on the BBC before it aired anywhere else

In general, be very careful with the PLACEMENT of modifiers that describe time or place.