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primary

[prahy-mer-ee, -muh-ree]
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adjective
  1. first or highest in rank or importance; chief; principal: his primary goals in life.
  2. first in order in any series, sequence, etc.
  3. first in time; earliest; primitive.
  4. of, relating to, or characteristic of primary school: the primary grades.
  5. constituting or belonging to the first stage in any process.
  6. of the nature of the ultimate or simpler constituents of which something complex is made up: Animals have a few primary instincts.
    1. original; not derived or subordinate; fundamental; basic.
    2. (in scholarly studies) pertaining to or being a firsthand account, original data, etc., or based on direct knowledge, as in primary source; primary research.
  8. immediate or direct, or not involving intermediate agency: primary perceptions.
  9. Sociology. (of social values or ideals) conceived as derived from the primary group and culturally defined as being necessary to the welfare of the individual and society.
  10. Ornithology. pertaining to any of the set of flight feathers situated on the distal segment of a bird's wing.
  11. Electricity. noting or pertaining to the circuit, coil, winding, or current that induces current in secondary windings in an induction coil, transformer, or the like.
  12. Chemistry.
    1. involving or obtained by replacement of one atom or group.
    2. noting or containing a carbon atom united to no other or to only one other carbon atom in a molecule.
  13. Grammar.
    1. (of a derivative) having a root or other unanalyzable element as the underlying form: The word "dole" is a primary derivative formed by modification of "deal," and "phonograph" is a primary derivative from "phono-" and "-graph."
    2. (of Latin, Greek, Sanskrit tenses) having reference to present or future time.Compare secondary(def 9).
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noun, plural pri·ma·ries.
  1. something that is first in order, rank, or importance.
  2. U.S. Politics.
    1. Also called primary election.a preliminary election in which voters of each party nominate candidates for office, party officers, etc.Compare closed primary, direct primary, indirect primary, open primary.
    2. a meeting of the voters of a political party in an election district for nominating candidates for office, choosing delegates for a convention, etc.; caucus.
  3. primary color.
  4. Ornithology. a primary feather.
  5. Electricity. a winding in a transformer or the like that carries a current and that induces a current in secondary windings.
  6. Astronomy.
    1. a body in relation to a smaller body or smaller bodies revolving around it, as a planet in relation to its satellites.
    2. the brighter of the two stars comprising a double star.Compare companion1(def 6).
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verb (used with object), pri·ma·ried, pri·ma·ry·ing.
  1. U.S. Politics. to challenge or oppose (the incumbent) in a primary election, usually for strong ideological reasons (often used in passive constructions): The congressman was primaried by a more conservative candidate.
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verb (used without object), pri·ma·ried, pri·ma·ry·ing.
  1. U.S. Politics. to run as a candidate in a primary election.
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Origin of primary

1425–75; late Middle English (adj.) < Latin prīmārius of the first rank. See prime, -ary
Related formspri·ma·ri·ness, nounpost·pri·ma·ry, adjectivesub·pri·ma·ry, adjective

Synonyms

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1. main, prime. 3. original; primeval. 5. beginning, opening. See elementary.

Antonyms

1, 2. last. 2. final.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

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British Dictionary definitions for primaries

primary

adjective
  1. first in importance, degree, rank, etc
  2. first in position or time, as in a series
  3. fundamental; basic
  4. being the first stage; elementary
  5. (prenominal) of or relating to the education of children up to the age of 11
  6. (of the flight feathers of a bird's wing) growing from the manus
    1. being the part of an electric circuit, such as a transformer or induction coil, in which a changing current induces a current in a neighbouring circuita primary coil
    2. (of a current) flowing in such a circuitCompare secondary
    1. (of a product) consisting of a natural raw material; unmanufactured
    2. (of production or industry) involving the extraction or winning of such products. Agriculture, fishing, forestry, hunting, and mining are primary industriesCompare secondary (def. 7), tertiary (def. 3)
  9. chem
    1. (of an organic compound) having a functional group attached to a carbon atom that is attached to at least two hydrogen atoms
    2. (of an amine) having only one organic group attached to the nitrogen atom; containing the group NH 2
    3. (of a salt) derived from a tribasic acid by replacement of one acidic hydrogen atom with a metal atom or electropositive group
  10. linguistics
    1. derived from a word that is not a derivation but the ultimate form itself. Lovable is a primary derivative of love
    2. (of Latin, Greek, or Sanskrit tenses) referring to present or future timeCompare historic (def. 3)
  11. geology relating to magmas that have not experienced fractional crystallization or crystal contamination
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noun plural -ries
  1. a person or thing that is first in rank, occurrence, etc
  2. (in the US)
    1. a preliminary election in which the voters of a state or region choose a party's convention delegates, nominees for office, etcSee also closed primary, direct primary, open primary
    2. a local meeting of voters registered with one party to nominate candidates, select convention delegates, etc
    Full name: primary election
  3. See primary colour
  4. any of the flight feathers growing from the manus of a bird's wing
  5. a primary coil, winding, inductance, or current in an electric circuit
  6. astronomy a celestial body around which one or more specified secondary bodies orbitthe sun is the primary of the earth
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Word Origin

C15: from Latin prīmārius of the first rank, principal, from prīmus first
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for primaries

primary

adj.

early 15c., "of the first order," from Latin primarius "of the first rank, chief, principal, excellent," from primus "first" (see prime (adj.)). Meaning "first in order" is from 1802. Primary color is first recorded 1610s (at first the seven of the spectrum, later the three from which others can be made); primary school is 1802, from French école primaire.

The Paris journals ... are full of a plan, brought forward by Fourcroy, for the establishment of primary schools, which is not interesting to an English reader. [London "Times," April 27, 1802]

Related: Primarily.

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primary

n.

1861, American English, short for primary election (1792, with reference to France; in a U.S. context from 1835); earlier primary caucus (1821).

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
primaries in Medicine

primary

(prī′mĕr′ē, -mə-rē)
adj.
  1. Being first or highest in importance; principal.
  2. Occurring first in time or sequence; earliest.
  3. Preliminary to a later stage of development; primordial; embryonic.
  4. Immediate; direct.
  5. Of, relating to, or being a sequence of amino acids in a protein.
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
primaries in Science

primary

[prī′mĕr′ē]
  1. Relating to a primary color.
  2. Relating to plant tissues or growth derived from the apical meristem in the tips of roots and shoots, whose cells divide and elongate to cause the plant to grow lengthwise.
    1. Relating to or having a carbon atom that is attached to only one other carbon atom in a molecule.
    2. Relating to an organic molecule, such as an alcohol, in which the functional group is attached to a primary carbon. A primary alcohol, for example, has the hydroxyl (OH) group attached to the last carbon in a chain.
    1. Arising first and spontaneously, as a disease, disorder, or tumor, and not as a result of a known medical condition or injury.
    2. Relating to the first set of teeth that develops in humans.
  5. Relating to the initial medical care given by a healthcare provider to a patient, especially in a setting of ambulatory, continuous care, and sometimes followed by referral to other medical providers. Compare secondary tertiary.
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The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
primaries in Culture

primaries

State elections of delegates to the nominating convention that chooses a major party's presidential candidate. In some states, delegates are elected by popular vote; in other states, party caucuses or miniconventions choose delegates.

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Note

Primaries occur at different times during the presidential election year, a situation that drags out the process by which parties nominate candidates but allows wide public exposure to candidates and issues.
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.