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• Primates
  Primates

  noun

  the order comprising the primates.
• primates
  primates

  The order of mammals that includes monkeys, apes, and human beings. Primates are distinguished from other animals in that they generally possess limbs capable of performing a variety of functions, hands and feet adapted for grasping (including opposable thumbs), flattened snouts, and other anatomical features. (See Linnean classification.)

Primates

American  

[prahy-mey-teez] / praɪˈmeɪ tiz /

noun

1. the order comprising the primates.

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primates Cultural  

1. The order of mammals that includes monkeys, apes, and human beings. Primates are distinguished from other animals in that they generally possess limbs capable of performing a variety of functions, hands and feet adapted for grasping (including opposable thumbs), flattened snouts, and other anatomical features. (See Linnean classification.)

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Etymology

Origin of Primates

1765–75; < New Latin, plural of Latin prīmās one of the first, chief, principal. See primate

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Primates primates

Primates were already around by the time the asteroid struck, in a Northern Hemisphere spring 66 million years ago.

From Slate ● Oct. 21, 2024

The permit also enables her to sell exotic animals through her business Primarily Primates, LLC.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 1, 2024

Action for Primates, a UK-based advocacy project, assisted police in the investigation.

From BBC ● Aug. 19, 2024

Primates -- and this includes humans -- are thought of as highly social animals.

From Science Daily ● Jan. 3, 2024

The C.D.C. also temporarily revoked the licenses of three companies, Hazleton Research Products, the Charles River Primates Corporation, and Worldwide Primates, charging these companies with violations of quarantine rules.

From "The Hot Zone" by Richard Preston

The charity fears the abandonment could be the first of many following legislation introduced in April which requires all primates kept as pets in England to be licensed.

From BBC ● Jul. 21, 2026

Humans are social primates, and our perceptions of what’s normal or desirable are shaped by those around us.

From Slate ● Jul. 6, 2026

This includes travelers who have recently visited countries experiencing Ebola virus disease outbreaks, as well as people who have had close contact with infected individuals or with bats, primates, or game animals from affected regions.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 22, 2026

Most primates today live in the tropics, and most primate fossils have been unearthed there too.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 20, 2026

It is generally believed that aids came originally from African primates, from monkeys and apes, and that it somehow jumped out of these animals into the human race.

From "The Hot Zone" by Richard Preston