primitive

1 of 2

adjective

prim·​i·​tive ˈpri-mə-tiv 

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

sometimes offensive : 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

primitively adverb

primitiveness noun

primitivity

ˌpri-mə-ˈti-və-tē 

noun

primitive

2 of 2

noun

1

a

: something primitive

specifically : a primitive idea, term, or proposition

b

: a root word

2

a(1)

: an artist of an early period of a culture or artistic movement

(2)

: a later imitator or follower of such an artist

b(1)

: a self-taught artist

(2)

: an artist whose work is marked by directness and naïveté

c

: a work of art produced by a primitive artist

d

: a typically rough or simple usually handmade and antique home accessory or furnishing

3

a

: a member of a primitive people

b

: an unsophisticated person

Synonyms

Adjective

• crude
• low
• rude
• rudimentary

Examples of primitive in a Sentence

Adjective

the time when primitive man first learned to use fire

The technology they used was primitive and outdated.

The camp had only a primitive outdoor toilet.

Noun

The museum is known for its collection of American primitives.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Houde said these mammoth animals are a primitive group of proboscideans ('elephantoids') from which modern elephants evolved. —Joseph J. Kolb, Fox News, 18 July 2017

Many are primitive and remote, and don’t have restrooms or water. —OregonLive.com, 12 July 2017

Here's how to tackle a daunting job A primitive drip irrigation system could be cobbled together by running water through an old garden hose that's riddled with holes along its length and has its end plugged. —Lee Reich, Detroit Free Press, 7 July 2017

The park offers primitive and RV camping with 41 campsites, 30 of which feature 30- to 50-amp electric, water and sewer. —Joe Songer | [e-mail], AL.com, 22 June 2017

Constructed in front of the stone ruins of the Patapsco Female Institute Historic Park in Ellicott City, that caveman-evocative set provides a suitably primitive stomping ground for the monstrous Caliban. —Mike Giuliano, Howard County Times, 23 June 2017

A lot of the campgrounds are primitive, and lack some common amenities - including water. —Jamie Hale, OregonLive.com, 6 July 2017

South Beach Campground, a primitive campground located just south of Kalaloch is open through September 25. —Brian J. Cantwell, The Seattle Times, 28 June 2017

Can primitive materials bring us closer to our origins? —Daisy Alioto, GQ, 23 June 2017

Noun

But better reasons inhere in the rush of new ideas that have reinvigorated the science of paleontology and forced us to recast murky old primitives as efficient and worthy creatures in their own terms. —Stephen Jay Gould, Discover Magazine, 11 Nov. 2019

By identifying and then chaining together a series of motion primitives, the Amazon researchers have been able to achieve stowing success rates (in the lab) of better than 90 percent. —IEEE Spectrum, 22 Feb. 2023

Rather than approaching the river as primitives, who might ponder how the gods created the river, or artists and poets, who would focus on the beauty of the river, our approach is that the river is a resource to generate power. —IEEE Spectrum, 7 Mar. 2023

Decentralized stablecoins are a crucial financial primitive for any DeFi ecosystem. —Leeor Shimron, Forbes, 27 Oct. 2021

And only a primitive would shoot an AR chambered in .223 without a matching .223 riflescope. —Andrew McKean, Outdoor Life, 18 Aug. 2020

Each threadgroup can access groupshared memory but can output vertices and primitives that don't need to correlate with a specific thread in the group. —Jim Salter, Ars Technica, 19 Mar. 2020

Skipping primitive instantiation with config tweaks Developers can optimize ray tracing pipelines by skipping unnecessary primitives. —Jim Salter, Ars Technica, 19 Mar. 2020

Microsoft is also asking developers to start thinking about dual-screen layouts for Microsoft Edge, with CSS primitives and a JavaScript API. —Mark Hachman, PCWorld, 22 Jan. 2020

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Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English prymytyff, primitive "early (of the Christian church), non-corporeal (of the cause of a disease)," borrowed from Middle French & Medieval Latin; Middle French primitif "original, primary (of a cause)," borrowed from Medieval Latin prīmitīvus "belonging to the earliest time or state, original," going back to Latin, "early, first-formed," from prīmitus "at first, for the first time, originally" (from prīmus "first, foremost, earliest" + -itus, adverbial suffix of origin) + -īvus -ive — more at prime entry 2

Noun

noun derivative of primitive entry 1; (sense 1b) Middle English, borrowed from Medieval Latin prīmitīvus, noun derivative of prīmitīvus "primary, original"

First Known Use

Adjective

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing primitive

• primitive streak

• primitive streak

Kids Definition

primitive

1 of 2 adjective

prim·​i·​tive ˈprim-ət-iv 

1

a

: of or relating to the earliest age or period

primitive forests

the primitive church

b

: closely resembling an ancient ancestor

a primitive fish

2

: belonging to or characteristic of an early stage of development

primitive tools

3

sometimes offensive : of or relating to a people or culture that lacks a written language and advanced technologies

primitive societies

4

: being or made by a self-taught artist

primitively adverb

primitiveness noun

primitive

2 of 2 noun

1

: something primitive : something basic or original

2

: a member of a primitive people

Medical Definition

primitive

adjective

prim·​i·​tive ˈprim-ət-iv 

1

: closely approximating an early ancestral type : little evolved

2

: belonging to or characteristic of an early stage of development

primitive cells

primitively adverb