- [only before noun] (especially British English) connected with the education of children between the ages of about five and eleven
- primary teachers
- primary education
- [usually before noun] main; most important; basic synonym prime
- our primary objective/goal/purpose
- The primary aim of this course is to improve your spoken English.
- Our primary concern must be the children.
- Good healthcare is of primary importance.
- The film's primary focus is on two families.
- What is the primary reason for global warming?
- [usually before noun] (formal or specialist) developing or happening first; earliest
- Researchers are conducting studies to determine the primary causes of this phenomenon.
- The disease is still in its primary stage.
Word Originlate Middle English (in the sense ‘original, not derivative’): from Latin primarius, from primus ‘first’. The noun uses date from the 18th cent.
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primary