Meaning & use
primary
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Meanings
adjectivebefore a noun
Most important or main among a group.
Grammar: Before a noun: the primary goal.
Patterns
- the primary reason
- primary source
Her primary goal is to finish school.
Safety is the primary concern.
The primary cause was poor planning.
adjectivebefore a noun
First in order or time, or earliest in development.
Grammar: Also in primary school.
Patterns
- primary school
- primary stage
Children begin primary school at five or six.
The primary stage lasts two weeks.
Primary education is free.
adjectivebefore a noun
Original or direct, not derived from something else.
Grammar: As in primary source.
Patterns
- primary source
Letters are a primary source for historians.
Primary colors can mix others.
Primary data came from interviews.
nouncountableAmerican
An election in which voters choose a party's candidate.
Grammar: American use, often plural: the primaries.
Patterns
- win the primary
She won the state primary.
The primaries begin in January.
Turnout in the primary was low.
Word forms
| plural | primaries |
|---|
Common combinations
- primary school
- She teaches at a primary school.
- primary source
- A diary is a primary source.
- primary concern
- Safety is our primary concern.
- primary care
- See your primary care doctor.
- primary colors
- Red, yellow and blue are primary colors.
Synonyms and how they differ
- main
- Main is more casual.
- principal
- Principal is formal, similar to primary.
- chief
- Chief sounds like a leader or top.
- fundamental
- Fundamental implies foundation.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: primary or primal?
primary vs primal
Primal means very ancient or instinctive.
Practice
Which phrase means the most important reason?
Choose one answer.
Primary means first or most important.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “primary”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.