Definitions for primary
ˈpraɪ mɛr i, -mə ripri·ma·ry

Princeton's WordNet(2.43 / 7 votes)Rate this definition:

1. primary, primary election(noun)

   a preliminary election where delegates or nominees are chosen

2. primary, primary feather, primary quill(noun)

   one of the main flight feathers projecting along the outer edge of a bird's wing

3. primary(noun)

   (astronomy) a celestial body (especially a star) relative to other objects in orbit around it

4. primary coil, primary winding, primary(adj)

   coil forming the part of an electrical circuit such that changing current in it induces a current in a neighboring circuit

   "current through the primary coil induces current in the secondary coil"

5. primary(adj)

   of first rank or importance or value; direct and immediate rather than secondary

   "primary goals"; "a primary effect"; "primary sources"; "a primary interest"

6. primary(adj)

   not derived from or reducible to something else; basic

   "a primary instinct"

7. chief(a), main(a), primary(a), principal(a), master(a)(adj)

   most important element

   "the chief aim of living"; "the main doors were of solid glass"; "the principal rivers of America"; "the principal example"; "policemen were primary targets"; "the master bedroom"; "a master switch"

8. elementary, elemental, primary(adj)

   of or being the essential or basic part

   "an elementary need for love and nurturing"

9. basal, primary(adj)

   of primary importance

Wiktionary(3.50 / 2 votes)Rate this definition:

1. primary(Noun)

   A primary election; a preliminary election to select a political candidate of a political party.

   Etymology: From the primarius, from primus (“first”; whence the adjective prime) + -arius (whence the suffix -ary); compare the primaire, primer, and premier.

2. primary(Noun)

   The first year of grade school.

   Etymology: From the primarius, from primus (“first”; whence the adjective prime) + -arius (whence the suffix -ary); compare the primaire, primer, and premier.

3. primary(Noun)

   A base or fundamental component; something that is irreducible.

   Etymology: From the primarius, from primus (“first”; whence the adjective prime) + -arius (whence the suffix -ary); compare the primaire, primer, and premier.

4. primary(Noun)

   The most massive component of a gravitationally bound system.

   Etymology: From the primarius, from primus (“first”; whence the adjective prime) + -arius (whence the suffix -ary); compare the primaire, primer, and premier.

5. primary(Noun)

   A primary school.

   Etymology: From the primarius, from primus (“first”; whence the adjective prime) + -arius (whence the suffix -ary); compare the primaire, primer, and premier.

6. primary(Noun)

   Any flight feather attached to the manus (hand) of a bird.

   Etymology: From the primarius, from primus (“first”; whence the adjective prime) + -arius (whence the suffix -ary); compare the primaire, primer, and premier.

7. primary(Noun)

   A primary colour.

   Etymology: From the primarius, from primus (“first”; whence the adjective prime) + -arius (whence the suffix -ary); compare the primaire, primer, and premier.

8. primary(Noun)

   A directly driven inductive coil, as in a transformer or induction motor that is magnetically coupled to a secondary

   Etymology: From the primarius, from primus (“first”; whence the adjective prime) + -arius (whence the suffix -ary); compare the primaire, primer, and premier.

9. primary(Verb)

   To take part in a primary election

   Etymology: From the primarius, from primus (“first”; whence the adjective prime) + -arius (whence the suffix -ary); compare the primaire, primer, and premier.

10. primary(Adjective)

    The first in a group or series.

    Children attend primary school, teenagers attend secondary school.

    Etymology: From the primarius, from primus (“first”; whence the adjective prime) + -arius (whence the suffix -ary); compare the primaire, primer, and premier.

11. primary(Adjective)

    That which is placed ahead of others.

    Preferred stock has primary claim on dividends, ahead of common stock.

    Etymology: From the primarius, from primus (“first”; whence the adjective prime) + -arius (whence the suffix -ary); compare the primaire, primer, and premier.

Webster Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Primary(adj)

   first in order of time or development or in intention; primitive; fundamental; original

   Etymology: [L. primarius, fr. primus first: cf. F. primaire. See Prime, a., and cf. Premier, Primero.]

2. Primary(adj)

   first in order, as being preparatory to something higher; as, primary assemblies; primary schools

   Etymology: [L. primarius, fr. primus first: cf. F. primaire. See Prime, a., and cf. Premier, Primero.]

3. Primary(adj)

   first in dignity or importance; chief; principal; as, primary planets; a matter of primary importance

   Etymology: [L. primarius, fr. primus first: cf. F. primaire. See Prime, a., and cf. Premier, Primero.]

4. Primary(adj)

   earliest formed; fundamental

   Etymology: [L. primarius, fr. primus first: cf. F. primaire. See Prime, a., and cf. Premier, Primero.]

5. Primary(adj)

   illustrating, possessing, or characterized by, some quality or property in the first degree; having undergone the first stage of substitution or replacement

   Etymology: [L. primarius, fr. primus first: cf. F. primaire. See Prime, a., and cf. Premier, Primero.]

6. Primary(noun)

   that which stands first in order, rank, or importance; a chief matter

   Etymology: [L. primarius, fr. primus first: cf. F. primaire. See Prime, a., and cf. Premier, Primero.]

7. Primary(noun)

   a primary meeting; a caucus

   Etymology: [L. primarius, fr. primus first: cf. F. primaire. See Prime, a., and cf. Premier, Primero.]

8. Primary(noun)

   one of the large feathers on the distal joint of a bird's wing. See Plumage, and Illust. of Bird

   Etymology: [L. primarius, fr. primus first: cf. F. primaire. See Prime, a., and cf. Premier, Primero.]

9. Primary(noun)

   a primary planet; the brighter component of a double star. See under Planet

   Etymology: [L. primarius, fr. primus first: cf. F. primaire. See Prime, a., and cf. Premier, Primero.]

Freebase(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Primary

   "Primary" is the only single from The Cure's third studio album Faith, released in 1981 on Fiction Records. It was the first song by The Cure to be remixed as a separate extended mix for release on 12" single. In fact, the original 12" extended mix is, to this day, still only available on the original 12" single, which has never been reproduced on any other album, making it quite a rare item. The main difference between the 7" mix, and 12" mix is that the extended mix lengthens the instrumental introductions to the song's verses.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Primary

   prī′mar-i, adj. first: original: chief: primitive: elementary, preparatory.—n. that which is highest in rank or importance: a planet in relation to its satellite or satellites.—adv. Prī′marily.—ns. Prī′mariness, the state of being first in time, act, or intention; Prī′mary-ac′cent, the accent immediately after a bar in music.—ns.pl. Prī′mary-col′ours, the colours obtained by passing the sun's rays through a prism: the colours of the rainbow—red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet; Prī′mary-plan′ets, planets revolving round the sun—not satellites; Prī′mary-quills, the largest feathers of a bird's wing; Prī′mary-rocks, the rocks which seem to have been first formed and contain no animal remains, as granites, &c.

The Standard Electrical Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Primary

   A term used to designate the inducing coil in an induction coil or transformer; it is probably an abbreviation for primary coil.

Editors Contribution(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. primary

   A perfect, accurate and specific facet.

   Primary school is vital for every child.

   Submitted by MaryC on March 4, 2020  

British National Corpus

1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'primary' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #1166

2. Written Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'primary' in Written Corpus Frequency: #2105

3. Nouns Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'primary' in Nouns Frequency: #3003

4. Adjectives Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'primary' in Adjectives Frequency: #145

How to pronounce primary?

1. 

   Alex

   US English

   

   Daniel

   British

   

   Karen

   Australian

   

   Veena

   Indian

How to say primary in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of primary in Chaldean Numerology is: 1

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of primary in Pythagorean Numerology is: 1

Examples of primary in a Sentence

1. The Texas senator:

   New York , Sanders vowed. The Republicans were battling for 95 delegates. Republican Donald Trump, originally from Queens, would need to win more than 50 percent of the vote statewide - – and dominate across the congressional districts -- to have a shot at claiming all those delegates. The importance of every last delegate has increased in recent weeks as Texas Sen. Ted Cruz has appeared to outmaneuver Trump’s campaign in the behind-the-scenes preparations for July’s convention. Texas Sen. Ted Cruz has been laying the groundwork for a contested convention – - where no candidate has the necessary 1,237 delegates to clinch the nomination – - by getting allies elected as delegates. That way, if voting extends to a second round, some of those pledged to Republican Donald Trump on the first round could peel off and support Texas Sen. Ted Cruz. This has heightened the pressure on Republican Donald Trump to clinch the nomination before the convention, though Cruz’s recent wins have made that harder. Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, who infamously panned Trump's New York values earlier in the primary, had been bracing for a tough showing in the Empire State. The Texas senator was already looking ahead on the primary calendar, turning The Texas senator attention to Pennsylvania, where The Texas senator delivered a speech calling on Americans to join together to move the country forward. It is time for us to get up, shake it off and be who we were destined to be.

2. Anita Hill:

   We have been listening to presidential debates and I have been trying to keep track, but I haven't heard one question about gender violence posed to the candidates. That needs to be addressed, i think this is something that we need to be raising awareness about. If you go to a town hall and you're in a primary state, I hope you'll raise your hand and ask the candidates what they're going to do about gender violence.

3. Pete Buttigieg:

   Democrats inference that Donald Trump is guilty because Donald Trump does not voluntarily permit Donald Trump deputies to testify hasrankled Republicans, who assert the importance of the presumption of innocence. Joe Biden then knocked Trumps argument that less than half of Americans support Joe Biden removal from office. Hes dumbing down the presidency beyond what I even thought Joe Biden would do, Joe Biden said. We need to restore the integrity of the presidency. Democratic presidential candidates from left, entrepreneur Andrew Yang, South Bend Mayor South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., former Vice President Joe Biden, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., and businessman Tom Steyer stand on stage during a Democratic presidential primary debate Thursday, Dec. 19, 2019, in Los Angeles. ( Associated Press) Later, Democrats largely defended Trumps breakthrough U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, which White House passed hours earlier. However, candidatesrailed against Trumps economy, despite multipleindicators that the economy is doing well. The U.S. unemployment rate stands at a half-century low of 3.5 percent, backed by consistently strong job gains in recent months that have largely squelched fears of a recession that had taken hold over the summer. This economy is not working for most of us, the middle class is getting killed, Joe Biden added. Joe Biden said the economy was not.

4. Sally Findley:

   Evidence shows that the families who initiate regular primary care while the child is an infant are more likely to continue having a good relationship with the provider, maintaining the medical home, between ages 1 and 5.

5. Matt Dorf:

   Someone like Huckabee is also doing it for conservative primary voters.

Images & Illustrations of primary

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