standfirst n. in British journalism, introductory or summary information above a newspaper article; a kicker (U.S.); a précis. Editorial Note: Sometimes wrongly used as a synonym with lead (or lede), which is part of the article whereas a standfirst is not. The content of the May 6, 2003, citation is made of in-house editing notes which ordinarily would not pass through the editorial process onto the news wires. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
It was a dark and stormy night. So begins the long and increasingly convoluted prose of Edwards Bulwer-Lytton’s best-known novel. Today the annual Bulwer-Lytton Contest asks contestants for fanciful first sentences that are similarly...
Enthusiastic book recommendations! Martha’s savoring the biography of Alexander von Humboldt, the 19th-century explorer, polymath, and naturalist who revolutionized our understanding of nature and predicted the effects of human activity on...