primordial

[ prahy-mawr-dee-uh l ]

/ praɪˈmɔr di əl /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR primordial ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

constituting a beginning; giving origin to something derived or developed; original; elementary: primordial forms of life.

Embryology. first formed.

pertaining to or existing at or from the very beginning: primordial matter.

Words related to primordial

pristine, primal, primeval, prehistoric, primitive, basic, early, elemental, first, fundamental, original, primary, prime, radical

Words nearby primordial

primo, primo de rivera, primo de rivera y orbaneja, primogenitor, primogeniture, primordial, primordial ovarian follicle, primordial soup, primordium, primp, primrose

Origin of primordial

1350–1400; Middle English < Late Latin prīmōrdiālis of the beginning. See primordium, -al¹

OTHER WORDS FROM primordial

pri·mor·di·al·i·ty

[prahy-mawr-dee-al-i-tee] /praɪˌmɔr diˈæl ɪ ti/, nounpri·mor·di·al·ly, adverb

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH primordial

primal primeval primordial

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

Examples from the Web for primordial

Sliding around beneath the surface of Los Angeles is something dark, primordial, and without form.
The Fiery Underground Oil Pit Eating L.A.|Geoff Manaugh|December 6, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He is rather drawn to figures in pain, to the primordial, and to gloom.
Trading Dime Bags for Salvador Dali|Jason McGahan|October 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
One predicted side effect of inflation is primordial gravitational waves: twisty ripples in the structure of the Universe.
The Big Buzz in Space News Is Something Called “Inflation.” What Exactly Is It?|Matthew R. Francis|March 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
By now a calm had settled over him, a kind of primordial survival instinct, he believes.
Black Hawk Down’s Long Shadow|Daniel Klaidman|October 9, 2013|DAILY BEAST

Jung argued that horror touches on primordial images in the collective unconscious.
Why Our Brains Love Horror Movies|Sharon Begley|October 26, 2011|DAILY BEAST
In it we see what our own planet must have been in its primordial epoch, in the pristine times of terrestrial genesis.
Astronomy for Amateurs|Camille Flammarion
Fire is the primordial kind of being, and all things are composed of fire.
A Critical History of Greek Philosophy|W. T. Stace
Together in aeons past you and I, sweet creature, proceeded from primordial One-Substance.
The Gay Gnani of Gingalee|Florence Huntley
It is quite possible that the primordial excretion may have been beneficially increased to serve the plant.
More Letters of Charles Darwin Volume II|Charles Darwin
Within the cotyledons the primordial leaves are seen, constituting the plumule or first bud of the plant.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 11, Slice 3|Various

British Dictionary definitions for primordial

primordial

/ (praɪˈmɔːdɪəl) /

adjective

existing at or from the beginning; earliest; primeval

constituting an origin; fundamental

biology of or relating to an early stage of developmentprimordial germ cells

noun

an elementary or basic principle

Derived forms of primordial

primordiality, nounprimordially, adverb

Word Origin for primordial

C14: from Late Latin prīmōrdiālis original, from Latin prīmus first + ōrdīrī to begin

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

Medicine definitions for primordial

primordial

[ prī-môr′dē-əl ]

adj.

Being or happening first in sequence of time; primary; original.

Belonging to or characteristic of the earliest stage of development of an organism or part.

Relating to a primordium.