primary group

American  

noun

Sociology.

1. a group of individuals living in close, intimate, and personal relationship.

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Etymology

Origin of primary group

First recorded in 1890–95

Example Sentences

The primary group of patients included 209 people, ages 18 to 89, who were infected with the coronavirus during 2020 or early 2021 and were seen at Swedish Medical Center or an affiliated clinic.

From Seattle Times • Jan. 25, 2022

Their primary group entertainment is trying to deduce which insufferable parent belongs to which member of their gang.

From Washington Post • May 12, 2020

The hunt for a cure for the common cold began in the 1950s, shortly after scientists discovered the primary group of pathogens—known as rhinoviruses—behind the sniffles.

From Scientific American • Sep. 4, 2018

And likewise, the primary group representing hobbyists who fly model airplanes previously expressed support for certain registration concepts.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 19, 2015

Admission to the primary group, that is to say, the group in which relationships are direct and personal, as, for example, in the family and in the tribe, makes assimilation comparatively easy and almost inevitable.

From Introduction to the Science of Sociology by Park, Robert Ezra