prima inter pares

[ pree-mah -in-ter -pah-res; English prahy-muh -in-ter -pair-eez, pree-muh ]

/ ˈpri mɑ ˈɪn tɛr ˈpɑ rɛs; English ˈpraɪ mə ˈɪn tər ˈpɛər iz, ˈpri mə /

Save This Word!

(of a female) first among equals.

QUIZZES

Look both ways before you take this quiz on contronyms, or words that can have opposite meanings.

Question 1 of 7

Choose the sentence that uses "rent" correctly.

Over time with inter-marriage, these distinctions will become even less important.
Which Potential Candidates Speak Spanish—and Will It Matter?|Eleanor Clift|December 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
By early evening on Tuesday, the inter-city transportation system of shared taxis was shut down.
The Radicals Who Slaughtered a Synagogue|Creede Newton|November 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It languishes on what is known as the gray list overseen by the Financial Action Task Force, an inter-governmental body.
How to Cut Off ISIS Terror Tycoons|Jamie Dettmer|September 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Previous fatwas on the issue of Internet chats have not gone so far as to declare an all-out ban on inter-gender chatting.
Egypt’s Fatwa Against Tinder: Clerics Ban Online Chatting|Nina Strochlic|September 3, 2014|DAILY BEAST

This means that the camera has to be static and I have to include some explanatory inter-titles.
Inside ‘Maidan’: Sergei Loznitsa on His Ukrainian Uprising Doc and Putin’s ‘Fascist’ Regime|Richard Porton|May 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The tenor dies; the prima donna appears to do the same, but the libretto consoles you by declaring that she only swoons.
Physiology of The Opera|John H. Swaby (AKA "Scrici")
Prima facie, the verdict here is less favorable than in the previous case.
Readings in Money and Banking|Chester Arthur Phillips
Et cert diu inter hos populos tant auctoritatis Sagamus n fuit.
The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents, Vol. II: Acadia, 1612-1614|Various
He believed in the value of viva voce discussion, and discouraged all unnecessary inter-departmental correspondence.
Fifty Years of Railway Life in England, Scotland and Ireland|Joseph Tatlow
As soon as the door had closed, Jack Carlson bounded back to his desk, touched a button on an inter-office communications box.
Hooded Detective, Volume III No. 2, January, 1942|Various