rudimentary

Often ru·di·men·tal

[roo-duh-men-tuh-ree, -tree]

adjective

1. pertaining to rudiments or first principles; elementary.

   a rudimentary knowledge of geometry.

   Synonyms: initial, fundamental
   Antonyms: advanced

2. Biology.,  of the nature of a rudiment; undeveloped or vestigial.

   Synonyms: embryonic
   Antonyms: mature

3. in an early, imperfect stage or form.

   How can we improve upon this admittedly rudimentary theory?

rudimentary

/ ˌruːdɪˈmɛntərɪ /

adjective

1. basic; fundamental; not elaborated or perfected

2. incompletely developed; vestigial

   rudimentary leaves

Other Word Forms

• rudimentarily adverb
• rudimentariness noun
• nonrudimental adjective
• nonrudimentarily adverb
• nonrudimentarilyness noun
• nonrudimentary adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of rudimentary¹

First recorded in 1600–20; rudiment + -ary

Synonym Study

See elementary.

Example Sentences

In one patch of blue canvas shelters, some 60 doctors, nurses and pharmacists have assembled what passes for a clinic: a makeshift pharmacy, a rudimentary laboratory and tents used as short-stay wards.

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The “Anthology” project found its origins in the early 1970s when Beatles insiders Neil Aspinall and Mal Evans began compiling “Scrapbook,” their rudimentary attempt at taking an audiovisual inventory of the group’s history.

Read more on Salon

There were even rudimentary first-aid supplies: bandages, iodine, and so forth.

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For much of the 20th century, financial modeling meant working with a rudimentary, laborious set of tools: eight-column ledger paper, mechanical adding machines or hand-held calculators.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

With the exception of some rudimentary re-creations, what’s visual in “The American Revolution” had to be conjured out of whole, hand-loomed cloth.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• elemental 
• elementary 
• embryonic 
• primitive 
• simple