nice to meet you; how do you do
Polite greeting used when meeting someone for the first time. Often followed by a self-introduction.
Nice to meet you, I'm Tanaka.
How do you do? I look forward to working with you.
Standard kanji spelling for the greeting; 初め carries the nuance of 'first time'.
Alternate kanji spelling; 始め is also used for 'beginning', but 初めまして is more common for this greeting.
A fixed polite greeting built on 初めて “for the first time,” used when meeting someone for the first time.