primo

[ pree-moh; for 1, 2 also Italian pree-maw ]

/ ˈpri moʊ; for 1, 2 also Italian ˈpri mɔ /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR primo ON THESAURUS.COM

noun, plural pri·mos, pri·mi [pree-mee Italian pree-mee] /ˈpri mi Italian ˈpri mi/. Music.

the part of a piano duet played on the upper half of the keyboard.

the first or leading part in an ensemble.

adjective

Slang.

first-class: dinner at a primo restaurant.
highly valuable or most essential: the primo player on the team.

Nearby words

primitive node, primitive polynomial, primitive streak, primitivism, primitivo, primo, primo de rivera, primo de rivera y orbaneja, primogenitor, primogeniture, primordial

Origin of primo

1785–95; < Italian: literally, first < Latin prīmus. See prime

Definition for primo (2 of 2)

loco primo citato

[ loh-koh pree-moh ki-tah-toh; English loh-koh prahy-moh sahy-tey-toh, pree-moh si-tah-toh ]

/ ˈloʊ koʊ ˈpri moʊ kɪˈtɑ toʊ; English ˈloʊ koʊ ˈpraɪ moʊ saɪˈteɪ toʊ, ˈpri moʊ sɪˈtɑ toʊ /

adverb Latin.

loc. primo cit.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for primo

But Klitschko is no Primo Carnera—the first giant heavyweight champion and an ersatz fighter who was set up by the mob.
Vitali Klitschko Contemplates Bowing Out of the Ring and Entering Ukrainian Politics|Gordon Marino|March 26, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Primo was with his mother and her boyfriend that weekend, so I had left the city and driven up to join Eliza in Hudson.
Daddy, How Come You’re Always Broke? Benjamin Anastas’s ‘Too Good to Be True’|Benjamin Anastas|October 15, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Stevie Wonder," says Hill, "and Earth, Wind, and Fire was the primo dance record.
My Celebrity College Roommate|Kathleen Kingsbury, Jaimie Etkin|August 30, 2009|DAILY BEAST
I had not been half an hour at work, when I heard a knock at my door, which I at once recognized as that of my primo tenore.
The Life of Ludwig van Beethoven, Volume I (of 3)|Alexander Wheelock Thayer

Alfred Giraudet joined the grand opera as primo basso cantante.
Delsarte System of Oratory|Various
Primo uterque vociferari coepit et certatim alter alteri obstrepere.
Selections from Viri Romae|Charles Franois L'Homond
Primo de Rivero then explained his position, which was curious.
Romantic Spain|John Augustus O'Shea
Primo, It must one day be true; and therefore may very probably be so at present.
Private letters of Edward Gibbon (1753-1794) Volume 2 (of 2)|Edward Gibbon

British Dictionary definitions for primo

primo

/ (ˈpriːməʊ) /

noun plural -mos or -mi (-mɪ)

music the upper or right-hand part in a piano duetCompare secondo

Also: primo tempo at the same speed as at the beginning of the piece

Word Origin for primo

Italian: first, from Latin prīmus

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