primary school

American  

noun

1. a school usually covering the first three or four years of elementary school and sometimes kindergarten.

2. elementary school.

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primary school British  

noun

1. (in Britain) a school for children below the age of 11. It is usually divided into an infant and a junior section

2. (in the US and Canada) a school equivalent to the first three or four grades of elementary school, sometimes including a kindergarten

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Etymology

Origin of primary school

First recorded in 1795–1805

Example Sentences

A couple of decades later, the city builds a primary school next door.

From Salon • May 9, 2026

She said: "A great teacher I had at primary school read many Dartmoor tales to us and one I always remember is the Hairy Hands."

From BBC • Apr. 28, 2026

For most of his childhood, growing up as the only Sikh kid at his primary school in Los Angeles, that bracelet stayed hidden.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 21, 2026

"An average primary school with 50% take-up will receive nearly £30,000 a year – around 18 times more than the previous National School Breakfast Programme," a spokesperson said.

From BBC • Apr. 19, 2026

As they passed the primary school with its trimmed hedges of whistling pine, Ifemelu suddenly imagined that she was indeed pregnant, and the girl had used expired test chemicals in that dingy lab.

From "Americanah" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Related Words

• grade school
• grammar school