Main Entry:

¹prim·i·tive

Pronunciation:

\ˈpri-mə-tiv\

Function:

adjective

Etymology:

Middle English primitif, from Latin primitivus first formed, from primitiae first fruits, from primus first — more at prime

Date:

14th century

1 a: not derived : original, primary b: assumed as a basis ; especially : axiomatic <primitive concepts>2 a: of or relating to the earliest age or period : primeval <the primitive church> b: closely approximating an early ancestral type : little evolved <primitive mammals> c: belonging to or characteristic of an early stage of development : crude, rudimentary <primitive technology> d: of, relating to, or constituting the assumed parent speech of related languages <primitive Germanic>3 a: elemental, natural <our primitive feelings of vengeance — John Mackwood> b: of, relating to, or produced by a people or culture that is nonindustrial and often nonliterate and tribal <primitive art> c: naive d (1): self-taught, untutored <primitive craftsmen> (2): produced by a self-taught artist <a primitive painting>

— prim·i·tive·ly adverb

— prim·i·tive·ness noun

— prim·i·tiv·i·ty \ˌpri-mə-ˈti-və-tē\ noun